Chapter Text
My first day of school. I couldn’t wait for it. Union Academy was only for the most talented and powerful kids in the world. And, of course, those who were lucky enough to win a scholarship, which I had done. I got 3rd place in a battle tournament for enrollment in the academy. Only the top 5 got to get in.
I didn’t pay much attention to the other winners, but I remembered Ruby Rose. She got 2nd place because I agreed to let her win against me. Although, even if I had actually tried, I think I would’ve lost anyway. After the competition, we became friends. I remember it, near clear as day.
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“Alright. Let’s begin, shall we?” His voice shot the whole room down to silence. I’m sure he didn’t mean to, but his voice cut all sound. I wasn’t talking to anyone, or at all, and I didn’t plan to. He had thick brown hair, the kind of hair that looked effortless but seemed to require 15 minutes worth of careful grooming. He had brown eyes that shined just enough for me to notice they were brown. He wore a brown button up coat, black long-sleeve shirt, and tight jeans. How do I know they were tight? He kept messin with the waistline and there was an uncomfortably clear outline of his groin.
“My name is Dick Grayson.” A girl in the back of the classroom laughed, purple dyed hair and wearing some sort of all covering, hooded cloak. “Yeah, yeah, my name is funny because of the pants.” More students laughed, admittedly I gave a small giggle. “Well, I lost a bet against a coworker of mine and I have to wear these every time I’m up here to speak with you. For some of you, this will be a lot of time. For others, not so much. Only 5 out of the 40 of you in this room will be considered winners. Believe or not, this competition only includes battles when we get to the last 10 of you. This first trial will eliminate 15 of you from the competition, and it's a test. Literally, I’ll be handing out papers shortly. However, I want you all to get to know eachother so, I’ll let you socialize for a few minutes.”
Some students got out of their seats, others just moved them closer. I calmly stayed seated and pulled out my favorite book, ‘The Scythe, The God, and The Ultimate Sacrifice.’ As I started once more, having read it over and over again, I was interrupted when a desk scooted next to me. “What’cha reading?” A girl's voice asked me. I turned and looked at the curious woman. She had short black hair with red tips and normal black eyes. She wore a ruby red hooded cloak, open at the front making it look slightly like a cape. She took her hood down when I turned to look at her. She wore a black jumpsuit with a utility belt. Her belt had no visible weapons on it but it had a couple of pouches that kind of looked like they could almost fit guns, knives, or maybe even some silverware. I stared at her face for a few moments, very awkward moments. She was no doubt pretty. After a few moments she snorted in amusement, making me blush… just a little. “I asked ‘what are you reading?”
I closed the book and handed it to her. “The Scythe, The God, and The Ultimate Sacrifice by Parker OmniGod. I’ve read this book. It’s an awesome story. I heard the author died.” I sighed, catching her attention. “It was written by my older brother. It was his last book before he died. He’d written others but this one always has and always will have its own place in my heart. This version, the published one, has a conclusive ending. My brother had planned to add a sequel, the original version of the book had a cliffhanger ending. When he was diagnosed with cancer, he had me help him change it to be a single, one-book story. I had told him that he was gonna get through it, that he would be able to write a sequel after he healed. He… he didn’t end up doing that.” I quickly realized I had overshared a bit and turned away from the girl. “I’m sorry for your loss. I loved all your brother's books. He was an incredible author. He managed to create such interesting and breathtaking stories. Honestly, my favorite thing about this book is that Alastair gets a harem.” I turned back to the girl with a smile, a smile she managed to create. She held out her hand for me. “I’m Ruby Rose.” I gave her a light handshake. “I’m Edison OmniGod.” And my best friend and I met for the very first time.
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We became pretty good friends. I had even met Ruby’s sister, Yang. Yang was already in UA, Union Academy, and had inspired Ruby to join the contest. The contest would end up lasting for over a month, ending just a week before the first day of school. Yang would be a second year student and we would only be first years. Me and Ruby were 14 and Yang was 16. Yang had become a first year when she was 15. If that seems strange to you, I’ll explain. Age barely matters for UA. If you manage to get in between ages 6-17, you start as a first year, Newbs. Second year, you become an Expert. Third year, you’re a Pro. Fourth year, you become a Master. Fifth year, you’re a Champion. 6th, and final, year, you’re a Novice. Yep, 6 years. Most people try to start at 14 or 12, so they can be 18 or 20 when they graduate and become Supers.
There are many types of Supers, but they mostly fall under 6 categories. Semblancers, whose powers have been identified as a Semblance. Semblances usually involve special features like animal tails, ears, wings, or other body parts. Though not always, sometimes they just include some standard powers.
Demi-Gods, whose powers have been identified as God-Gifts. In the first age, during the reign of the Mother Primordial Chaos and her godly children, the gods had many kids, their kids inherited their powers and they began to pass. Each time a descendant of a god and a human has their first child, they inherit their parents powers. There can only be 1 each generation, with only 2 or 3 left of each line of Demi-Gods.
The third type are the Ethereals. The angels, demons, and gods in the first age all died in the Great Extermination, their powers absorbed by their murderers. They abide by the exact same rules as the Demi-Gods however, their lines are much more abundant, as there were 300 million of those many higher beings in the first age, and have even evolved to the point of their abilities becoming modernized. Only some though, most of the time they’re pretty basic. The Ethereals are often very easy to identify.
The 4th types are the Quirkies. The Quirkies are the only type of Supers that have genetic ties to their powers. Their powers have always been around, appearing with 1000 people around the globe a couple thousand years ago. Now, the Quirkies population is an estimated 2 billion. Their powers aren’t completely specific, or even very connected, but they all come from their DNA. Their powers are called Quirks, mainly because ADHD and Dyslexia are very common in the Quirkies.
The 5th type is called Anomalies. Their powers are identified often by the fact they can’t be identified. There even objects in the world classified as Anomalies. Every object or threatening entity that has Anomalous properties is under the security, containment, and protection of the SCP Foundation. Get it? Did you see what I did there?
The 6th type of Supers are the Normies. People like me who have no powers. We usually use weapons, anomalous objects, or other things to help us be Supers. Normies are often seen as lesser humans, though they have to let us get by. It’s the law. The Coalition of Global Order and Respect allows us all Freedom Of Religion, Speech, Success, Sexuality, and others. Their constitution was only written 150 years ago and it still holds up today with only 1 amendment. And that amendment was only meant to correct a spelling error and to restate it better.
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“You’re a family of Semblancers, right?” I asked Ruby. I came over to her house for a sleepover. We were sitting on their living room couch, watching the new anime, Wings Of Fire. “Yep.” Ruby said, wearing a red onesie with a pattern of small wolf heads everywhere. I was wearing a simple purple onesie. The onesie matched my violet colored eyes, of course I was also told it matched well with my brown hair.
“My mother is a Semblancer. My father however, was a Normie like you… before he died. Yang’s dad was a Quirkie, he had some sort of fire breathing thing and it slightly pressed itself into her Semblance.” I paused the Wings Of Fire quickly and turned to Ruby. “I’m sorry. If you don’t mind me asking… how did he die?” Ruby had a soft smile reach her face before it disappeared. “It was 7 years ago. He and I were at the movies. We had just finished watching Big Bang Theory: The Movie. Right after we left the building, we saw a woman and her 2 kids being robbed at gunpoint in an alley. My dad didn’t hesitate, he ran right to them and punched the robber. The robber shot him right in the chest. A nearby police officer heard the commotion and was able to arrest him and save me and them. The officer, Officer Owens, told me that if my father hadn’t gotten the man to shoot, he would’ve never seen the ordeal. He told me that my father was a hero. After he died my mother-” She stopped herself.
“Ruby…” She looked me right in the eye. The new scar across her eyebrow, one she thought I hadn’t noticed wasn’t there yesterday, caught my eye. “Are you okay, Ruby?” Ruby shrinked into the couch, pulling up her knees and burying her face in them, arms wrapped around her head. She started crying, trying her best to keep quiet and very sadly failing. I didn’t know what to do. I considered giving her a pat on the back, just sitting there quietly, or hugging her. But to be honest, I did none of those things. I decided to do what my Mother did after Parker died.
“Ruby, people die. It’s a sad part of life. Even the gods died, and they were gods. The world is a cruel place. Y’know what else it is?” Ruby choked back a sob and looked up at me, her nose slightly running. “It’s full of honesty, respect, and best of all,” I held out my hand and she took it. “It’s full of people who love, accept, and will always help you, no matter what. Example, me.” Ruby smiled and pulled me into a hug. “Thank you, Eddy. You’re a great friend.” I hugged her back, I could feel her ease up, letting her legs down and her tears stopped rolling down her cheeks. I could even, very uncomfortably I might add, feel her nose stop running.
“Eddy. Thank you. But, it’s not just about my dad. My mom…” I pulled out of the hug and looked her in the eye. “She’s the one who left that scar above your eye, right?” Ruby reached for it and tried to cover it. I calmly put her arm back down and grabbed it. “Did she do this?” I pulled up the sleeve on her right arm and showed the multiple scars and markings across it. “Or were these ones you?” Ruby started to cry and pull into a ball again, but I grabbed her hand and held it tight. “Are you okay?” I asked. She sniffled and looked up at me. “No. No, I’m not. She doesn’t stop. She used to do it more but ever since the competition and you, I’ve been able to leave the house more.”
“Does she do it to Yang too?” Ruby unfurled back into a human being rather than a ball. “It only happens to Yang when mom is really drunk. Me on the other hand, I’m her practice dummy whenever.” Rage. Pure rage. Her mother was a monster. Monsters didn’t deserve people like Ruby in their lives. “Ruby, if you ever feel unsafe or are in a bad place, my home is always open. My mom would be glad to finally have me bring a friend home.” Ruby smiled and wiped the tears and snot away. “Thank you, Eddy. Can… Can we go to your home now?” I nodded and hugged her, pulling her in tight. “Can, Yang come too?”
“Of course.”
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Long story short, Yang and Ruby came with me home. My mom ended up calling the police and… well 7 years of completely intended abuse is pretty conclusive. Yang and Ruby came to live with me, my mom, and my little sister. We had 2 empty rooms after my father and brother. My mom was very happy to know I had friends who cared about me. Even happier that I had friends that I cared about.
So, when the competition was nearing its end, I decided to lose to her. And guess what? It was a foot-race. I fake tripped on a rock and let her win. She knows that I did it on purpose and thanked me… 237 times. I guess I should tell you the other winners, especially because they come up in the story.
- 5th Place: Alastor Craigs
- 4th Place: Gwen Tennyson
- 3rd Place: Edison OmniGod
- 2nd Place: Ruby Rose
- 1st Place: Gregory Afton
Apparently the last challenge was a spelling bee. Union Academy, and the other 156 schools for Supers, like to make their scholarship challengers very… random. It’s why they lie to you about what challenges there are and how many. Now, I suppose we should actually start the story. Let’s begin with how my first day went.