At precisely 8:00 a.m., a large, gleaming blue bus came to a halt in front of Ken's house, its engine rumbling softly as it idled. Two men, dressed in crisp, ash coloured uniforms adorned with silver badges, and tags with their names on it, stepped out of the bus and approached the front door.
Their faces were stern and serious, wrapped with a hint of curiosity in their eyes. Before they could even raise their hands to knock, Ken suddenly opened the door, his eyes locking onto the two strangers with a mix of surprise and wariness.
Clearing their throats in unison, one of the men spoke up in a deep, gruff voice, "Are you Ken Layden?" The question hung in the air, heavy with an unspoken purpose.
"Ken replied, "Yeah."
"I suppose you received a text message from the academy this morning," the man continued. "The bus is here to pick you up."
Ben chimed in, "Oh yeah, we did. Come on boy, you should get going." He said, tapping Ken on the shoulder.
Giving his goodbye hugs to Fen and Leah, Ken walked towards the bus with a heavy heart, while the trio watched as he boarded the bus.
As Ken entered the bus, he was met with unfamiliar faces of people he was seeing for the very first time, but at the far end, two familiar faces had popped up, waving for Ken to come over.
"Man, am I glad to see you!" Scott exclaimed as he greeted Ken with a series of handshakes.
Tyler had also followed suit, doing the same handshake as Scott's.
"I'm glad to see you guys too." Ken replied as he took an empty seat beside them.
After bidding farewell to Fen, Ben, and Leah, Ken waved as the bus departed, heading towards an unknown destination. At first, the ride was bumpy and disturbing, as they had to pass through several rural areas with pot-holes and damaged roads. But along the way, it had gotten smoother; that even the chatty Scott had momentarily slept off.
The journey took them through bustling cities and dense forests, the scenery outside the window changing with each passing mile. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, they arrived at a location with a massive black gate bearing the words "Earth Fighters Academy" in bold, golden letters.
Following a series of security checks, the bus parked behind other similar vehicles, and the students were instructed to disembark. Before they could leave though, the stern-looking officer who had spoken to Ken, had started distributing phone-like devices to each student, displaying their image on the screen.
"That In your hand is a device that serve as your pass into various areas in the academy, including identification, restaurant, lecture hall, and most importantly, it will be useful for obtaining your elemental powers." He explained.
"I'm sure you see how important it is, so don't lose it, or you'll be kicked out of the academy." He joked, "Just kidding, but seriously, don't lose it."
The students found his attempt at humor peculiar, but they knew better than to question it. After every other thing had been explained, the students were then allowed to exit the bus.
As the students filed out of the bus, they were greeted by a sprawling campus that seemed to stretch on forever. Towering buildings made of glasses and gleaming steel pierced the sky, their windows glinting in the sunlight. The air was alive with the hum of activity, as students and faculty bustled about, going about their daily business.
Ken's eyes widened as he took in the sights and sounds. He had never seen anything like it before. Scott and Tyler, who had been quiet until now, grinned at each other, clearly excited to finally be at the academy.
"This is just amazing!" Scott exclaimed, to which Travis replied, "I know right."
"Yeah, that's everyone's first reaction until the real journey begins." a voice was heard coming from the front of the group. "Welcome to the academy, just as I've introduced myself to the other newbies, I am Lugo, and I will be your guide on your first time in the academy. We just have to wait for the last bus to arrive."
Lugo was a towering figure, with a stern expression and a sharp jawline. He wore a crisp, ash coloured uniform, adorned with silver insignia that seemed to shimmer in the sunlight. It was the same uniform as that of the men that had brought them here.
As the last bus drove in through the gates, Lugo had walked away from the group, then with a booming voice, he shouted. "Gather around everyone!"
About two hundred or so students had started gathering in front of Lugo, and that included Ken's group. The just arrived students had also joined them after receiving the same phone-like device as everyone else.
"Alright, now that everyone is here. Let's get going!" Lugo announced as he lead the students towards a big, four storey building. "We have a lot to cover, and not a lot of time to waste."
As they walked, Ken couldn't help but feel a sense of awe at the sheer scale of the academy. He had never seen anything like it before. He wondered what lay ahead, and what secrets the academy held.
Reaching the front of the four-storey building, Lugo introduced it as the academy's library where the history and details about the academy, earth, and the whole universe in general could be find.
In line with this he explained the ongoing threat that earth was undergoing which had led to the creation of the EFA; Earth Fighters Academy. The threat was due to the surrounding planets dominated by humans who weren't from earth, but were planning to invade the earth planet because of their own dying planets.
It was a story everyone had heard before due to it being broadcasted on the news everyday. The earth needed its defenders, so it created the academy where people could possess extraordinary powers and fighting skills.
And for the past ten years, earth had been able to fight off any form of invasion before they could enter the surface of the earth. Over the years, technologies have improved, the earth has changed in a much more better way, and this is due to the work of a single person. A person known to be Earth's only leader, Hermish Carlson.
They moved forward as the cafeteria building was showed to them, fighting halls, Lecture halls, and many other different buildings which held little or great significance.
Finally, the tour had came to an end as they got to the last building of all, the dormitory building.
"This is the dorm building built only for 1st level students. Which means, this is your dorm, while on that far end." Lugo said, pointing towards another building,
"That's the dorm building for the 2nd levels. If I were you, I wouldn't dare check it out. But in the end, I can't change your mind. I can only warn you. Since kids nowadays are always curious of the unknown, they won't listen anymore."
"Now, on the special made device in your hands," Lugo continued. "Turn it on and tap on the item that says dormitory house. It will show you the details of your dorm, the rules and regulations, and the room number you're in. Once you're done, you can then head into your respective dorm rooms. Farewell, and for the last time from me, welcome to the academy."
With that, he turned and disappeared into the distance, leaving the students to fend for themselves. Ken had seen his dorm room number, same as Scott and Travis, but the three are different and they seemed to be far from each other.
While Scott had a number 39, Travis had 108, while Ken is 129. Although, Travis's room doesn't seem to be too far from Ken's, since they were just 21 rooms apart from each other.
Moreover, Ken was glad their rooms didn't get to be near each other, 'cause as the tour was ongoing, he kept on having this feeling of wanting to bite Scott and Travis on the neck. And the series of messages coming from the system was causing a great fear in him.
While the trio headed for their respective dorm rooms, a certain person who had been observing them for a while couldn't help but reveal a devilish smile.
"I warned you, didn't I? Now, no one's going to save you here." Brandon said as he chuckled to himself.
*****
Love this one? You can check up an even better one written by the same author; While everyone else is a god, I became a god slayer - Coming soon on webnovel.