The group walked outside and followed Ice Hawk to a limousine that was waiting for them. They all piled in, buzzing with excitement. Ice Hawk mumbled to himself as he sat in the front next to the driver.
'...barely gonna make it on time…gotta get them prepped the second we get there…"
Finn and Atreus looked around the interior dumbfounded. The windows were blacked out from the inside, preventing anyone on either side from seeing through. Expensive soft drinks, candies, pastries, and more were lined along the small shelves and filled the cupboards of the luxury vehicle. The two boys tore into the new foods, curious to dive into flavors they'd never tasted before.
The trio of international students burst into a smug laughter.
"It's as if they've never seen food before. How…pathetic," a female voice chortled.
A small girl wearing a long plaid skirt and black designer turtleneck was sitting across from the two boys. Her hand covered her mouth as she snobbily tried to stifle her chuckling.
Atreus felt anger welling up inside him. He clenched his fist and felt his eye twitching. Insults from strangers about having powers never fazed him. There was something about being patronized by arrogant people, especially powered ones, that ignited a certain rage in him.
'I won't be looked down on. By anyone.'
Before Atreus could retaliate with an insult of his own, a small beam of light shot through the limo. The car fell silent as they all stared at the prissy girl in both horror and amusement; the bottom half of the left side of her jet black bob cut had been burned away.
"Nobody likes an arrogant prick," Rose laughed from the far end of the limo. Steam rose off her extended pointer finger as it dimmed from a bright shine to a dull glow. She winked at Atreus and popped a candy in her mouth.
The black haired girl shrieked in anger as Atreus, Finn, and Rose roared with laughter. She stood up quickly to try and approach Rose, but forgot she was in a limo. Her head smacked onto the ceiling and she flopped back down onto the seat, causing the three new friends to laugh even harder.
Ice Hawk slid the dividing window between the front and back of the limo down and poked his head through, his presence immediately shutting the laughter down.
"I don't even wanna know what happened, but shut up and shape up. We're almost there," he grumbled.
"We barely just got into the car, how could we possibly-"
The blacked out windows faded from dark to clear, and the students all gasped. They were hurtling through what seemed to be an endless tunnel of blues, oranges, pinks, and purples streaking past the limousine.
'Some type of teleportation...amazing...'
The streaks of color began to dissipate, revealing the young adult's first look at their new home.
Academy Prometheus.
Rising above a forest clearing, enormous white buildings stood proud, stark against the blue sky. As they approached they saw numerous massive pillars towering above all, holding up the roof of the center building. Elegant windows scattered the walls in perfect symmetry. The shapes, curves, and edges of the buildings were an exquisite blend of contemporary and Ancient Greek architecture, aptly modeled after the culture of the Academy's namesake. Beings of every imaginable shape, size, color, and creed bustled through the beautiful concourse. Huge half-human-half-animal demihumans laughed with what appeared to be fairies.
Some students walked, some levitated, some soared through the sky standing on swords or were propelled with machinery. The limo made its way over a great bridge made of Hardlight. Underneath was a sprawling river network, where aquatic beings of all sorts could be seen mingling and making their way towards their destinations.
"Wicked…"
All the new students' eyes shone with eagerness and curiosity as they took in the overwhelming sights.
Ice Hawk smirked at their reactions and rolled the divider back up.
The limousine passed underneath a great marble arch, home to two towering golden gates. They arrived at the front of the main building and immediately leapt out.
"Trey let's GO! Let's explore the WHOLE campus!"
"Tuh. You'll have to keep up. Rose, roll with us."
The red haired girl nodded and the three of them began to wander, the trio of international students heading the opposite direction.
"Hold it."
Ice Hawk beckoned the groups back and handed each of them a duffel bag with their name on it. Atreus caught a glimpse of the arrogant girl's tag; Aurora Sallow.
'Hmph. Definitely from Brittania with a name like that.'
"We're running slightly late, so we're gonna have to skip your free time to explore the school. You all need to be prepped for the practical evaluation process. Follow."
The group followed Ice Hawk and made their way through the crowded concourse and over to a gigantic arena.
"These look like locker rooms or something," Finn whispered to Atreus.
He nodded. They were both massive fans of both mixed martial arts and the Hero Games, so they were familiar with the layouts of these types of arenas. They had attended a few events after they managed to scrounge up enough money together.
Waiting for them at the entrance was a middle-aged woman in a black dress. Her hair was short and silky. She looked like just an average person if it weren't for her hair constantly shifting colors and her outlandish, loud makeup.
"Welcome, children, welcome! I'm Miss Polly, head of Marketing and Costume Design here at Academy Prometheus. Follow me inside, we're running just behind schedule!" She gestured towards the door as she happily scurried into the building. Her demeanor was charming, washing away almost all the anxiety of the young Heroes. They followed the jolly woman inside.
They entered a white foyer with two dark gray doors.
"Ladies, if you'll be so kind as to enter here please! Come come!" She hurried Rose and Aurora into the door on the right.
"Hmph. Inside."
Ice Hawk swung the remaining door open and pointed inside.
"Talkative, are we?" The pale boy jeered.
Ice Hawk glared at him from behind his thick sunglasses, and fear creeped down the boy's spine. He put his head down and walked in, the other boys followed.
They had entered a spacious black room. A number of white, large single-person booths lined the walls. Each one had a different student's name engraved into a nameplate on the door of the booth.
"Locker rooms!," Finn cried out, high fiving Atreus.
"Quiet. Find your name. Get the clothes out of the duffels I gave you. Suit up. If it doesn't fit, suck it up. You have about ten minutes. Hop to it."
The four young men ran around the black room ecstatically searching for their lockers.
.
.
.
The students emerged on the other side of their rooms, each donning a gray tracksuit with a thick white stripe going down the center of the tracksuit jacket, and white bands circling where their sleeves met their shoulders. A bold black flame with the white letters "A.P." was embroidered on the left chest.
Miss Polly clapped daintily to get their attention.
"Now now, my young fledgelings! Listen up! It's time for your practical evaluations. When you hear your name called, come through this door. The rest will be explained once you're in there. Best of luck!" She quickly skipped through the door and shut it behind her.
Ice Hawk groaned and massaged his temples, his blue skin a startling contrast to the white walls.
"...that airhead woman…Alright. Since Miss Polly didn't explain the purpose of the practical evaluations, that responsibility falls on me. You're each going to be asked to perform a series of tasks by various Academy instructors in order for us to place you in programs and classes that are best suited for your strengths and weaknesses."
The pale boy tended to his fingernails and asked, "Isn't that already what we did for our entrance exams? Why not just use that data?"
"Silence, Oliver. You've given me a headache already, don't add to it." Atreus and Finn nudged each other, struggling to hold their laughter in. Oliver's face grew tomato red, and he shot the boys a glare before looking back at his nails.
"Anyways, if you had let me finish, you'd know that these tasks are vastly different from your entrance exams. Significantly more…unique."
The large blue man opened the door and began to lumber through. He paused, poked his head back into the room, and said with a stern voice, "I wouldn't muck this one up if I were you lot. Your practical evaluations begin now."
With that, he closed the door behind him.