I'd never imagined I'd be back, but here I was. Depending on which side of the sticks you hailed from, there were worse places to be. Or better ones.
New Haven was a university situated in New Dawn City, designed to offer a variety of subjects and position itself as an elite institution. But it fell short of that ambition. Despite its grand campus, far superior to many top-tier academies within the states, its charm was purely external. The university harbored promising talent, but most either couldn't meet the high expectations or simply gave up trying. Only the freshmen, with hopes of breaking free from this place, still viewed it as paradise. For the rest of us who'd spent more than a year here, reality was far from that illusion. Even the professors seemed to prefer the confines of their offices to the actual classrooms.
The fact that my badge still worked spoke volumes. I'd been away for nearly a year, transferred schools, yet I could still waltz right in. Convenient for me, disastrous for security. Anyone who'd left could return, potentially causing more harm than good. While I had no such intentions, I was aware others might.
The absence of visible security personnel made me wonder if budget cuts were responsible. The thought wouldn't surprise me; this institution should be operating at a loss, its continued existence nothing short of a miracle. Ever since this town's revival, it has managed to scrape by.
Personally, I preferred the old town, Ventari. An interesting sentiment given I'd never actually lived there, only experiencing it through photos and vintage movies before it was renamed to New Dawn City. What I'd gleaned from these snippets was that Ventari had much more to offer. As for crime, the levels seemed to be consistent.
My destination was Brewer's Hall, home to all the general studies courses, and where I would find Buttons. She had given me her schedule for the day so I could locate her whenever I chose to arrive. Given the early hour, I knew she'd be immersed in an Applied Sciences class, a subject that intrigued both of us. Her interest lay in the science, mine in the myriad questions buzzing in my mind. This course was one of many prerequisites if you harbored any ambition of transcending the confines of our small, blue planet.
Mr. Lynuss was a short, elderly man with just a patch of grey hair clinging to his scalp. His posture, stooped over a cane, didn't help him, nor did his comical appearance. Despite this, he was kind-hearted. He should have retired a decade ago, but with no children and his wife long passed, he had no company waiting for him at home. Teaching here, I think, was his way of passing time and enjoying the conversational interactions that many seniors crave.
Among the few professors who made it a point to attend all his lectures, he didn't rely on any assistants. His class wasn't challenging either, making it a hit with the students. It was the only class I never skipped, a significant admission given my less-than-impressive school attendance record.
As I walked into class, he greeted me with a warm smile, treating me like one of his current students, yet he didn't say a word. No one really cared what class you attended, as long as you didn't interrupt their teachings. University seemed to be more about purchasing the degree that proved you completed school, not about the actual classes you took.
Mr. Lynuss wasn't lecturing at the moment. Instead, every student was engrossed in their tablets, working through the material. Well, not everyone—some were merely engaged in casual chitchat.
I spotted a brunette with curly hair, absently fiddling with her tablet. She wore a rose gold nose ring, unlike Buttons' silver one. The seat right behind her was vacant and conveniently the closest, so I slid into it. She glanced up as I walked past, and I rewarded her with a smile.
"Haven't seen you before," she whispered.
"Yeah? Well, I haven't seen you either," I retorted, "Are you new?"
She furrowed her brow. "No."
"Me neither. So, we've got a problem here," I observed.
She seemed amused. "Oh yeah? And what's that?"
"Well, neither of us are new, and yet we don't know each other. So either someone's lying, or we've been incredibly good at avoiding each other," I proposed.
She shook her head and rolled her eyes, but her amused expression told me she was enjoying our banter.
"Suppose we just kept missing each other then," she conceded.
"Suppose so. Rayvon Bishop, but everyone calls me Raven," I introduced myself, extending a hand towards her.
She grasped my hand in return, "Julia Rhodes, but everyone just calls me Julia."
Instantly, it hit me - this was One-Eyed Joe's daughter. I had imagined her to be younger, definitely not around my age. She was a far cry from Joe's looks, leading me to wonder who her mother was and how Joe had managed to win her over.
"You're not a big fan of nicknames, I take it?"
She shrugged nonchalantly. "Never had one that stuck."
"We'll have to change that."
"No, I think I'm fine with Julia. It sounds authentic."
"So, you're suggesting Raven doesn't? Come on, there's a certain allure to it, you can't deny that."
"I'm not sure I'd want to be named after a bird."
Feigning shock, I pressed, "How do you know it's derived from the bird, and not the hero?"
"That'd be odd, considering you're not a girl and this isn't a superhero story."
I shrugged, amused. "Well, isn't that up for debate?"
"Alright, 'Raven', call me when you're out there fighting crime in tights."
"I'll make sure to do that, signature costume, cape and all."
Our laughter filled the room. For the next few minutes, Julia and I indulged in light-hearted conversation until a door opening broke my attention. Ricky had entered, and for a moment, he froze when he spotted me in the classroom. We locked eyes, and then he continued to his seat.
Julia caught the interaction, "What's up with that? You two aren't on the best of terms?" she asked, gesturing towards Ricky.
"Nah, we're good. Just some unfinished business, that's all."
I didn't linger on that subject. It wasn't her concern, and there was no point dragging her into it.
"I noticed armed security on the roads on my way here. Do you know what's up with that?"
She seemed to understand my subtle attempt to change the subject and thankfully, she didn't mind, or at least she pretended not to. "Yes, there's been a concerning decrease in attendance due to a string of kidnappings lately. Most, if not all, of the victims are later found dead with their gems harvested. The armed security is an attempt to reassure students and increase attendance."
That possibility hadn't crossed my mind. I supposed people our age were prime targets, our gems mature enough to be harvested. Also, universities offered a plentiful supply of naïve students lacking street smarts. This unsettling news reminded me of a headline I'd noticed last week.
"I didn't think the authorities cared about the university or our attendance," I mused.
"They don't, really, but if enough students stop attending, people start asking questions."
"Who would care?"
"Randel Corp., for one. They, along with Sun Rise and a few other companies, fund the university. How would it look if their sponsored institution had low attendance and poor grades?"
"They could just withdraw their funding. Why keep wasting money?"
Julia shrugged. "Beats me. The employees of those companies are usually pretty tight-lipped."
"My dad worked for Sun Rise. He never mentioned anything about this, but then again, I never asked." I rubbed the back of my head, taking in Julia's words. "You like conspiracies, huh?"
"Kind of my thing, along with a few other hobbies."
Something struck the back of my head. Turning around, I found a balled-up sheet of paper on the ground. Buttons, sitting at the back, was waving at me, grinning. She gestured to her phone.
Mine was always on vibrate or silent. I never liked being woken by a call in the middle of the night. I knew it wouldn't be long before I was drawn back to that lifestyle, though.
'Already loving your first day back, huh? Moved on from Em and set your sights on Julia?' I didn't even bother replying.
Responding with a universal finger gesture, I heard Buttons' giggle resonate throughout the classroom. That told me everything I needed to know.
Julia watched me curiously as I lowered my hand. "We're friends, have been for a while," I found myself saying, as though I had to justify my action.
"I wasn't going to comment. I'm just interested, that's all," Julia replied.
"In?"
"You. First Ricky, and now Buttons. You must be in Blackout, huh?" It was more of a statement than a question, but her curiosity was palpable.
"Something like that," I told her, not wanting to rehash my past.
"It's odd that we've never met."
I shrugged. "Been away for about eight months, so I haven't been around much."
Our conversation paused as I felt the need to ask her about One-Eyed Joe. The moment his name was mentioned, her expression turned confused. If she was pretending, she deserved an Oscar. But, she wasn't fooling me.
She seemed to understand my subtle attempt to change the subject and thankfully, she didn't mind, or at least she pretended not to. "Yes, there's been a concerning decrease in attendance due to a string of kidnappings lately. Most, if not all, of the victims are later found dead with their gems harvested. The armed security is an attempt to reassure students and increase attendance."
That possibility hadn't crossed my mind. I supposed people our age were prime targets, our gems mature enough to be harvested. Also, universities offered a plentiful supply of naïve students lacking street smarts. This unsettling news reminded me of a headline I'd noticed last week.
"I didn't think the authorities cared about the university or our attendance," I mused.
"They don't, really, but if enough students stop attending, people start asking questions."
"Who would care?"
"Randel Corp., for one. They, along with Sun Rise and a few other companies, fund the university. How would it look if their sponsored institution had low attendance and poor grades?"
"They could just withdraw their funding. Why keep wasting money?"
Julia shrugged. "Beats me. The employees of those companies are usually pretty tight-lipped."
"My dad worked for Sun Rise. He never mentioned anything about this, but then again, I never asked." I rubbed the back of my head, taking in Julia's words. "You like conspiracies, huh?"
"Kind of my thing, along with a few other hobbies."
Something struck the back of my head. Turning around, I found a balled-up sheet of paper on the ground. Buttons, sitting at the back, was waving at me, grinning. She gestured to her phone.
Mine was always on vibrate or silent. I never liked being woken by a call in the middle of the night. I knew it wouldn't be long before I was drawn back to that lifestyle, though.
'Already loving your first day back, huh? Moved on from Em and set your sights on Julia?' I didn't even bother replying.
Responding with a universal finger gesture, I heard Buttons' giggle resonate throughout the classroom. That told me everything I needed to know.
Julia watched me curiously as I lowered my hand. "We're friends, have been for a while," I found myself saying, as though I had to justify my action.
"I wasn't going to comment. I'm just interested, that's all," Julia replied.
"In?"
"You. First Ricky, and now Buttons. You must be in Blackout, huh?" It was more of a statement than a question, but her curiosity was palpable.
"Something like that," I told her, not wanting to rehash my past.
"It's odd that we've never met."
I shrugged. "Been away for about eight months, so I haven't been around much."
Our conversation paused as I felt the need to ask her about One-Eyed Joe. The moment his name was mentioned, her expression turned confused. If she was pretending, she deserved an Oscar. But, she wasn't fooling me.
As I formulated my question, a loud alarm resonated throughout the room, interrupting our conversation. Red lights flashed, and a thick metal door automatically sealed the only exit. Mr. Lynuss, previously engrossed in his computer, leaped from his chair, looking as startled as the rest of us.
"Isn't that-"
"The armed shooter alarm? Yeah."
In response to a spate of school shootings, all institutions had implemented this system: two-inch-thick steel doors would descend to block all entrances and exits until the situation was under control. The windows were all bulletproof – unless the shooter had a high-caliber weapon capable of penetrating the reinforced glass, then we'd have to worry.
The echo of gunfire followed by explosions reverberated through the hallway, causing the metal door to vibrate. I felt beads of perspiration form on my forehead. Fear? Perhaps a bit. I was unarmed, trapped in a confined space, not exactly the optimal circumstance to face such a situation.
"What's happening?" A panicky student asked. His face was flushed, sweat dripped from his forehead, and his breathing was irregular. He looked like he might wet himself at any moment.
"Stay calm, the authorities will have the situation under control shortly," Mr. Lynuss attempted to reassure, although his trembling knees betrayed his calm façade. No one was fooled.
"Okay, what mess have you dragged us into?" another student turned to Ricky, who was sitting across from Buttons.
"What? Why are you asking me?"
"It's not surprising, you and your friends are known gang members. It was only a matter of time before you brought trouble to us."
"Bitch, what did you say?" Ricky shot up from his seat.
"Hey, calm down," Buttons stood up, trying to intervene.
The tension between Ricky and the accusing student was palpable. Ricky was known to be unfazed by gender when it came to confrontation, and the student seemed to be pushing all his buttons.
"Damn this," Ricky finally spat, "Hope you burn in hell."
"Right after you," the student retaliated. If I had popcorn, I'd relish this escalating drama. I've always been the kind of person who thrives in chaos, deriving perverse satisfaction from others' turmoil. Call me dark or twisted, I can't help it.
Ricky, foregoing a verbal spar with the student, pointed his ring-clad hand toward the wall. A brilliant light emanated from the ring, and a bolt of lightning blasted a hole in the wall. The sight stunned everyone except a few, including me and, surprisingly, Julia.
"Let's get out of here," he told Buttons, quickly checking his phone.
"Mr. Richards, you can't just destroy school property, nor can you leave during a lockdown," Mr. Lynuss protested weakly.
"Tell the school to send me the bill," Ricky retorted, nonchalantly jumping out of the hole he'd created in the wall.
Seeing Ricky's departure, a few students contemplated following suit, their fear battling their desire for escape. But they hesitated, probably realising that taking such an action was far more challenging than merely contemplating it.
"See you later, Ray. Julia, take care of him," Buttons threw me a casual two-finger salute, before disappearing through the same exit.
What an unconventional first day back, I thought, trying to suppress a grin.
Looking out of the window, I saw bodies strewn across the grass, creating gruesome patches of red on the green lawn. The distant sirens, once a low murmur, grew louder as the source of the gunfire seemed to approach our location. The classroom, already a cauldron of fear, was now teetering on the edge of complete panic.
One of the students either leapt or was shoved out of the hole Ricky had made, landing awkwardly and breaking a leg. The sight of the bone jutting out at an unnatural angle was enough to dissuade others from trying the same desperate escape.
The metal door, which was previously resounding with the rat-tat-tat of bullets, exploded in a cloud of smoke, blowing off its hinges. As the smoke cleared, the figure that walked in was an unsettling surprise. It was Charlie, a quiet guy I knew from high school and who had also ended up at the same university.
His distinguishing features were a wart on his upper lip and an unusually high-pitched voice that earned him endless ridicule. Today, he looked uncharacteristically menacing, and incredibly muscular. The transformation was both surprising and unsettling.
"What are you doing, Charlie? You aren't this type of person," Mr. Lynuss stammered, looking just as baffled as I felt.
Charlie's face was flushed and veined, his eyes were bloodshot, and he was carrying a M134A Minigun - a multiple-barreled machine gun capable of firing six thousand rounds per minute. He was definitely high on something.
"Where's Ricky?" he demanded.
"I knew it was his fault!" The woman from earlier piped up, eager to assert that she had been right. Unfortunately for her, Charlie's response was swift and lethal. He turned her into Swiss cheese.
The room plunged into chaos. Some people tried to push past Charlie and run, others attempted to escape through the hole Ricky had created. Charlie, seemingly impervious to the panic he was causing, mowed down people without a second thought.
Suddenly, Julia pushed me behind her and a wall of ice erupted in front of us. It took a moment for me to realise that the wall was shielding us from the hail of bullets. I glanced at Julia and spotted a bluish gem embedded in her earring, hidden by her hair.
This surprised me even more than Ricky's earlier display. Julia had a gem, which meant she had undergone the expensive extraction procedure. It was an unexpected revelation, and one that added another layer of mystery to an already confusing day.
"Damn it!" Charlie spat, his frustrated curse cutting through the sudden quiet as his gunfire ceased.
I risked a quick glance around the icy barrier Julia had conjured. The sight that met me was far from reassuring. Charlie, our classmate turned gunner, was fumbling with the jammed machine gun.
Against my better judgment, my body acted before my mind had a chance to protest. I vaulted over the table, propelled by adrenaline and a desperate need to disarm him. It was sheer madness, but I couldn't stand by and watch as he picked off my classmates.
Charlie's attention snapped to me. The machine gun clattered to the floor, abandoned. Swiftly, he reached behind, extracting a Glock. Panic seized me - a secondary firearm. My reckless charge was suddenly laid bare as the suicidal move it was.
But then something whipped past me.
His green eyes rolled back, his body twitched violently. His previously unmarked face now bore a vivid scar, a network of lines spreading across it, evoking the image of a blood-red tree.
I whirled around. Julia was standing firm, an extended finger aimed at Charlie. My question was answered - she was more than capable of defending herself.
"Why didn't you do that sooner?" I asked, panting heavily.
"I wasn't aiming to kill him," she answered, her voice somber. "And you? Hell-bent on a suicide mission?"
"I... didn't expect a secondary," I admitted, crouching to retrieve the Glock. It was standard issue, but the bullets were not. High-Explosive Incendiary Armor-Piercing - HEIAP. They could penetrate walls, car doors, even bulletproof glass. He had three extra magazines, each precious round now in my possession.
"Still idiotic," she chastised, her gaze flicking with concern to me. "Are you okay?"
A quick self-assessment revealed a rapid heartbeat and sweat-slicked skin, but otherwise unharmed. "I'm fine. What are you looking for?"
This," Julia said as she pointed towards a small black disk that pulsed with a red light.
"And what is it?"
"It's bad news," she replied. "Short story, it suppresses rational thinking, amplifies anger, and then uses a person's gem to augment their abilities."
"Sounds suicidal. Unrefined gem power is like playing with a grenade," I muttered.
Her nod was firm and grave. "True, but this tech is developed to change that dynamic."
"But how could you know that?"
Suddenly, the sirens outside intensified, clearly closing in on our location. The authorities were almost here.
"New Dawn City has changed considerably. There's a lot you don't know, 'Raven'. But I need to go. I'll see you around."
"But wait," I called out, curiosity taking hold of me. "Why did you shield me? You could've escaped. Why did you choose to stay?"
A faint smile danced on her lips as she looked back over her shoulder. "Isn't it apparent? Buttons asked me to look out for you." With that, she disappeared out of the room just as the sounds of sirens swelled to an overpowering crescendo.