Valor Glade

[The Villain King]

@LeVen @Dahrinn @Nico @spoopily @Karma200 @Zaira

Humans. We've been to the deepest trenches of the ocean, and the most remote mountain peaks. We've been to outer space tons of miles away, and we've been to the furthest reaches of cyberspace in the computers and devices that are never more than arm's reach away. But the final frontier of mankind is not what everyone expected it to be...I know I sure didn't see it coming.

It's our minds. Our subconscious is the biggest unexplored realm in all of humanity.

Crazy, right?

Okay, let me start from the beginning...

2020. Earth's in crisis. All sorts of problems with natural resources, lots of possible wars heading our way if we didn't get things figured out with the other people we shared this giant rock in space with. It didn't look like we were headed anywhere good at the rate we were going.

But then it started happening...

People started to Awaken.

It's strange, how it happens. Different for everyone who experiences it. One guy reported to the media that he was arranging books on his bookshelf, and it just hit him like a mental tsunami. Some other guy was mowing his lawn in a certain pattern. It's random things like that, and the subconscious of kids and teenagers started getting triggered by all this random stuff, and they gained new abilities.

Abilities, like special powers. They could grow stronger by standing in darkness, or communicate with animals, or scream loud enough to crumble a skyscraper to dust like it was a gingerbread house. The powers people got always seemed to have something to do with the event that Awakened them in the first place.

People weren't sure what to think, at first. How do you react to one of your race's biggest fantasies suddenly becoming reality? But, inevitably, with great power comes great big assholes who want to ruin people's day. Lots of Awakened were using their powers to commit crimes and generally "disturb the peace", as they say.

As you can imagine, this did not make our global situation much better.

It gets worse.

Where there are assholes ruining people's day, there must also be inexperienced idiots there to try and stop them with dangerous superpowers and equally dangerous good intentions. A bunch of Awakened vigilantes showed up on the streets, following the police scanners and trying to stop the rise of superpowered crime being committed. However, the lot of them had zero clue how their powers really worked, and in the battles between the vigilantes and criminals, civilian casualties were sky high and the property damage caused was through the roof.

Naturally, the people were pretty pissed, and so they turned to the government to apprehend the reckless vigilantes who were causing way more harm than good. The government outlawed superpowered heroics, and several Awakened "heroes" were arrested and charged with hefty fines and jail times. But that wasn't the end of it.

One particularly prestigious psychologist appealed to the government in light of the police force that had returned to its previously helpless state in stopping the villains and criminals roaming the streets. In response, the government passed an act that allowed Awakened individuals to participate in crime-fighting, but only if they had earned a special government-sponsored certificate that indicated the individual was capable of upholding the law with minimal collateral damage. These certificates could only be earned by graduating from a college-level institution that the government funded the creation of. The school was constructed in a location where there would be no people around to be bothered by the rampant superpowers of budding Awakened youth: the remote wilderness regions of Wyoming. A small town was build around the school, and the place was dubbed Valor Glade.

Well, that's basically it. Years passed. Young adults started graduating and earning their certificates. Some became full-time crime fighters, others chose to pursue average lives and careers like normal people.

What's that? Who am I? Well, that's a really long story.

Eh? You want to hear it? All right, but you'd better get comfortable. This is gonna be a while, yeah?

Hmm, where to begin?

~

 

[The Villain King]

All right, you all set? Got your soda and popcorn? Got your box of tissues for the sad parts? Got your blanket to hide under for the scary parts? Didja go to the bathroom at least three times?

Good. Let's get started, shall we?

Everything started when I was...how many years ago was it...three, no four, after the...

It all started when I was 19, when I got that letter on my doorstep. That was the day that everything changed.

~

Gemini stared at the envelope. He had some to recognize the insignia printed on the front, as he had seen it multiple times in the news on television, in the countless newscasts covering the construction of the new university for young Awakened adults.

Valor Glade. He liked the name, it really rolled off the tongue in a pleasant manner.

Tearing open the letter, Gemini unfolded the letter inside and plopped down on his bed to read it.

"Formally invited to attend...Valor Glade Academy for Awakened...parent or legal guardian consent...yadda yadda...emancipated youth...legal liabilities including, but not limited to...blah blah blah...today's society...yeah, okay, whatever."

He lay back on his bed and looked up at the cracked apartment ceiling. It wasn't the most attractive thing in the world, but sometimes he liked to examine the cracks in the paint and think of new game concepts, or daydream about whatever it was he decided to daydream about (usually some girl).

"Yeah, all right. I guess they'd want me to get an education, if they were here. Couldn't hurt to learn some better control, anyhow. And I suppose, if things work out, I could go work for some police department and kick some criminal ass..."

'They', of course, referred to the parents that Gemini never knew. He always assumed they were just like him: crazy about video games, ambitious, tons of fun, witty. Maybe, if he got out more, he could meet them someday...

He looked back at the letter. Back up at the cracks in the ceiling. Back down at the letter. Over at the game console in the corner. Finally, he let out a large breath of air.

"All right, all right. Academia, it is, then."

Gemini reached over for the phone.

~

The VGAA representative arrived the next morning, appearing in the doorway in an instant.

"Hey, you guys have people that teleport around to help people move in? That's pretty sweet."

The representative smirked and rolled his eyes up toward the ceiling a bit.

"I help almost everyone move in. Not many other teleporting people around. You ready to go?"

"Yeah, I've got everything in these two cases." Gemini pointed to the two impressively large travel cases sitting on either side of his feet. "This one has my clothes in it, and that one has my tech and my personal belongings, so be extra careful with that one."

The representative chuckled. "Don't worry, it'll be over in an instant." He snapped his fingers, and sure enough, it was.

Gemini looked around at the room he had been given. It was certainly large enough, at least, large enough to fit his game system, television, and computer. The representative next to him clenched his teeth and scrunched his face, and the two luggage cases appeared on the bed.

"Thanks man."

"Just doing my job. Orientation is in the afternoon, starting down in the courtyard. It begins at 3 PM sharp. There's a campus map on your bed so you don't get lost. If you ever have any questions, flip that switch on the wall."

The man pointed to a switch in a case on the wall, labeled, "IN CASE OF IGNORANCE, PULL".

"Charming."

"Yeah, well...the guy who founded it has quite the sense of humor. Anyways, I'll be off. Cya 'round."

Once the representative was gone, Gemini quickly unpacked and powered on his laptop, checking the internet connection. Somehow, in the bottom right corner where the 'connection bars' would normally be, there was instead a large infinity symbol.

"Just what kind of school is this...?" he pondered, closing his laptop and looking out the window. The view was actually quite nice, and he was glad he registered sooner than most of the students so that he got priority for a good room. He could see out towards the recreation center and the main offices, and the sun high overhead.

"What kind of school indeed..."

~

Xeren Grieve awoke from his nap. Something didn't feel right. He had trouble sleeping a lot, but this time it felt more...connected to something, like an event that made him wake up. He slowly emerged from underneath his bedcovers, dressed only in boxers and a dark grey undershirt. He sat on the edge of his bed for a few minutes, rubbing his eyes and looking around the room. There wasn't much to furnish it, just the bed, a dresser, a desk with only a small laptop and one of those perpetual-motion sculpture things swiveling around on it, a bookshelf stocked with various psychological texts as well as books on lucid dreaming, dream interpretation, meditation, and, unrelated to the rest of the books, a solitary book about as thick as a box of tissues, simply titled Mythologies of the Old World. It was one of his favorites.

He grunted as he rose to his feet, and grabbed some clothes from the dresser. A striped black-and-white shirt. Dark blue jeans. Black socks, and a pair of black Converse All-Stars that he wore often. On Xeren's way out, he grabbed his coat off a coathook by the door.

Breakfast was dismal, as usual. Not a word was said between Xeren and his uncle, the famed Professor Grieve. This was normal for most mornings. I was also normal for Uncle to try and break the silence with pointless small talk.

"First day of VGAA, Xeren. You've got a lot to look forward to," he said, only looking up from his newspaper and coffee for a split-second.

The young man remained silent. His uncle sighed.

"Look, just because you're the nephew of Valor Glade's founder doesn't mean anything. You'll have a normal experience, you'll fit in with everyone else."

"Dear Uncle, I do believe you are mistaken. I've never had a particularly large history with 'fitting in', as you say," said Xeren coldly, taking a rather large bite of toast.

His uncle sighed again.

"Fine. Just...just try not to kill someone on your first day, okay?"

It was a weak jest, but Xeren took it as literally and seriously as possible.

~

Once he arrived in his dorm, he set down his luggage and looked around with a scrutinizing eyebrow raised. Well, at least he'd have the weekends and holidays to spend back in his familiar cave instead of this place. He sat down on the bed and let out a large breath of "uuuuuuuugh".

Well, no better way out than through, I suppose.
...
I need fresh air.

Xeren left his room and made his way out to the courtyard, walking in a slow circle around the admittedly beautiful fountain before heading in a random direction, which happened to be towards the lounge area. There was music playing inside, some variant of techno or electronica, by the sounds of it, and he could make out people playing billiards or cheering around a couple of people and a television in the corner.

Not the kind of relaxing I had in mind, but there's a first time for everything.

 

[Nico]

Kanra sat in her office chair her legs kicked up on the desk not caring about the fact she was in a skirt. A smile played on scarlet lips as she sipped from her tea cup. Today was the day she would go to the Academy. It was getting quite dull around here for her liking. None of her clients had approached her with any jobs. So this was her alternative, she even had gathered info on all the students of the school. She had to agree most of them were quite fascinating. She had also found out that her beloved older cousin was going to be attending as well. "Dear Char-chan, it's been awhile. You will be surprised how much I've changed~!" she laughed.

A knock at the door cut short her laughter. Looking at the door with a displeased look she stood up from her chair. Placing the teacup down the moved to the door with a sway in her hips. She opened the door and looked the person up and down.

"Miss Kanra Hitori, I'm here to take you do the Academy." the man spoke. It was a dull monotone and Kanra could tell that the man was clearly bored. She smiled and twirled "Ne~ Of course you are. Let me get my bags." she said and grabbed her suitcase. She put on her fur coat that secretly held her weapons and cellphones. No one needed to know about those, right? She walked out the door and locked it before hooking arms with the man. "Lets go Teleporter-san." she said with a quip in her voice. The man sighed and muttered something about not getting paid enough for this. With a force and a squish of gravity they soon appeared on campus.

Kanra narrowed her eyes and frowned and turned to complain to the man, but he was gone. "What a gentleman." she said sarcastically. She opened the door to her dorm and looked around. It wasn't tasteful at all, it definitely needed more colors. She sighed she would deal with that later. Crawling on the bed she buried her face in the pillow before getting up once more. She supposed she could wander around the campus for awhile, maybe meet some new faces. At that the sly informant grinned before heading out and walking down the sidewalk.

 

[Nad]

Even if Shade was sure that going back to classes would be definitely annoying, she was a bit excited the day Valor Glade's representative showed up at her door. Firstly, she hated that crappy apartment she was renting. But, more importantly, after graduating, she would be able to use her abilities against some street assholes without the police bothering her. And that was one of the few things that could excite her about her life. Besides, she was sure they'd train her fighting some other weirdos in that school. So, when the men finally arrived, she smiled to herself.

"Finally. I left my luggage over there, I guess it's your job to take it." she just said, as she walked out and headed by her own to the teleporter. The man was struggling to get all her things, while he was swearing on a low voice. It wouldn't take her much effort to make those things lighter to help him, but it was his work after all, wasn't it? She waited for him to take her to the academy, and they arrived in no time. Just like everyone else, she first went to check on her dorm. As she imagined, it wasn't a great thing, but at least she had the rest of the campus to go around when she got bored. And that was what she did as soon as she left her things around there.

She started to walk around, getting to know the place a bit. There were many rooms, and she sighed in annoyance. That meant she'll have to meet many students as well. Anyway, even if she came across a few ones in the hall, she ignored them and walked straight outside. At least that place had a nice courtyard. After taking a small walk, she sat down on a bench close to the fountain. She started to play with the water, manipulating the gravity to change its usual path. Doing that, she made the fountain look a lot better than it usually did, and randomly using her powers always help whenever she was starting to get bored. Of course, she had no idea if that place allowed its students to use their powers outside classes, but she didn't care either.

 

[Dahrinn (Groucho)]

Lyall walked to what he was pretty sure the entrance to Valor Glade, He wan't entirely sure... today he was not quite blind... but his vision was dim and terribly blurred... He believes it to be a side effect of the thick black blood in his eyes... One of his escorts there said "Alright... this is the place."
The escorts turned and walked away as Lyall stepped forward into the campus.

He grimaced, and there was a cracking noise as his left hand split open. He covered his right pointer finger in the black tar, he made sure it was not currently acidic before walking along a wall with his finger against it, leaving a black line that he would be able to sense later in case his sight completely left him again..

He was now walking around the dormitory, and he heard footsteps, which he didn't react to. His head was tilted down slightly and he attempted to not draw attention. His eyes were slightly hidden by his hair.

He kept walking.

 

[LeVen]

Valor Glade. It was certainly impressive, far more elaborate than what she was used to. She was looking forward to promise of education and the potential future that she wouldn't normally have if she stayed at home with her clan of a family. For most of her natural human life Jisa was surrounded by children, and was forced to help take care of them since her parents were too busy either working or having more children to do the job themselves. Perks of being the oldest she supposed. Though it wasn't much of a perk.

A change of pace would be nice, and she was looking forward to the relative solitude the campus would provide. Of course, she would still make friends and talk to people. That was a given. Standing around her dorm room Jisa tried to recall the last time she actually could hear the sound of her own thoughts. It'd been a while, and she could get used to it.

Dropping her luggage to the ground by her bed, the woman laid on the surprisingly soft bed that was supposed to be hers, thoroughly enjoying herself.

 

[Karma200]

Charlotte moved around her 4 bedroom house that her father had thrown at her as well as a large sum of money in his will. It's been about 3 months since the death of her father but Charlie hadn't even bothered to go to his funeral, she had been busy with trying to get a job to help pay the bills but now she didn't even need to do that. Funny how he finally decides to help her out when its time for him to die. In Charlotte's eyes nothing but a coward who runs away from the responsibility in his life. With a final shrug Charlie picked her fork up and took a bite of the delicious and warm wild salmon she cooked. Wild salmon had a lot of fat acids which is essential to the brain, plus it tasted wonderful so Charlotte tended to eat it about twice a week.

Her long dirty blonde hair swinging around with every move Charlie made, her brown eyes looked around the practically empty place. There was only a couch with a cheap TV in front of it, one bed in her bedroom but there weren't any pictures. Well, except the framed picture of Charlie when she was younger, smiling next to her was her favorite family member Kanra. Because Kanra was a cousin on her father's side, Charlotte's mother refused to allow the two of them to play together after she divorced Charlie's dad. Of course it hadn't stopped the two of them from sneaking out of their homes at night and meeting up to play in abandoned buildings no one entered because of the ghost stories. All the trouble the two of them had gotten into together made Charlotte smile a bit at the memory. With a shake of her head Charlie finished her food and washed her dish, it was stupid to just wait for everything she used to pile up. It meant having to wash the dishes longer then she needed to, why not wash the dish when you're done using it? The sound of her doorbell ringing had Charlotte stiffen before looking down at herself, she walked around in nothing but a white button up T-shirt that showed a lot of leg. It wasn't even buttoned up all the way. Well, it wasn't like she was going anywhere today.

Charlie looked through the peep hole to see a man standing there, waiting for her to answer the door. Should she open it or just pretend she isn't home? She really needed to learn more about her abilities, not being able to see someone's thoughts without touching them wasn't something she enjoyed. Who wanted to touch a stranger anyways? Charlotte carefully opened the door with suspicious eyes at the man.

"Charlotte Bronte, I'm here to bring you to Valor Glade," The man spoke and for a minute Charlie wondered how he had gotten here because there was no siting of an unfamiliar car. She decided not to question that any longer, since the Awakening some people had really strange abilities.

"Hold on, I have to go get my bags," Charlotte held a finger up at him before closing the door and running upstairs into her undecorated room. There was one large luggage so it wasn't much at all, Charlie snatched a pair of shorts and pulled them on along with some sneakers. Grabbing the handle of her suitcase Charlotte rushed downstairs and opened the door once again.

"Ready," Charlie said as she closed and locked the door behind me. The man reached for her and Charlotte grew cautious once more but then he touched her wrist. Oh, so that's how he got here. Charlie felt a bit nauseated but when she blinked a few times she realized that there was a door in front of her. Obviously her room, which she got from the guy just before he let go of her.

"Thanks, bye bye," Was all Charlie said to him as she waved before entering her room and closing the door on him. Locking it into place Charlotte looked at the simple room... she could probably get use to this.