A/N: I'm really getting into this AU. I'm so so excited to introduce more characters and more about the whole lore I have planned. Also, I'm just going to come out and say that not all 13 fighters on each side will be love interests. I don't have all the love interests completely planned out, so if u want anyone specifically then say it now or forever hold your peace!
"[Name] dear, did you remember to pack your toothbrush?"
You let out a groan at your mother's inquiry. She had always been the type of mother to be a bit... overbearing. You didn't blame her in the slightest, you were her only child and she was a struggling single mother so it only made sense in your mind that she would be meticulous in everything she does. Still though, who would be dumb enough to forget something like a toothbrush?
"Yes mom!" you grumbled, as she tried to plant a deep kiss on your cheek much to your annoyance. It was so embarrassing. The two of you stood in the middle of the airport about to board your flight to Rome and here she was trying to smother her teenage daughter with kisses. This was complete and utter public humiliation! You could only hope that there were any people your age at this airport that could see your suffering.
"I'm sorry dear, it's just that I hate to see you go!" Your mother sighed as she held you tighter in her arms, as if you were some kind of teddy bear. "I thought I had at least a few more years until you went away to university, but now you're going abroad for highschool! Oh kids, they just grow up so fast!! Soon you'll graduate, move out, get a boyfriend, have kids-!!!"
"I'll be home in a few months anyways for winter break." You cut her off as you slapped your hands over your ears. You didn't wanna hear about the idea of having kids in the future, especially from your own mother of all people! All she did was pout, causing you to drop your hands in surrender. "I swear, you're so dramatic. Sometimes I think you should have been an actor instead of a mother. "
She pinched your cheek and wiggled it around. "I couldn't because I had you, my little bugger!"
Before you could ask what she meant, the voice of the receptionist boomed across the room.
NOW BOARDING FLIGHT 105 TO ROME, ITALY
"That's my flight." You said impassively, as you looked back to see other passengers boarding the plane,
"It is indeed" She replied and she pulled into a hug. Her hand rubbed circles into your back, and you could no longer feel an ounce of embarrassment. Her embrace was full of comfort and love, the feeling of hug that you now realized you wouldn't see for a while. You hugged her back and rested your head on her shoulder.
"My dearest daughter." She softly murmured. "I'll miss you, but I know you will do great things. Remember to have fun along the way, and if anything happens you can always come home. My arms will always be open to you."
She then broke off the hug, and knocked you lightly upside the head. "And don't do anything stupid. Just use im not there to keep you in line isn't an excuse to slack off!"
A small laugh escaped your throat as you rolled your eyes playfully and gave a fake pout. "You have such little faith in me! I'm so hurt!"
"Oh quit your whining!" She said as she pushed you forward. "Now get going! You don't wanna be stuck with your mom for another year, do ya?"
"I suppose not" You giggled as you ran to catch the plane.
You felt like your heart was about to burst with excitement. For as scared as you felt towards going to a foreign country on your own, you also felt a sense of adventure, a sense of excitement at the idea of exploring the unknown. You couldn't help but allow a huge smile to grow on your face, as you stepped forward into your new life. You could never possibly know what was ahead, but then again you never would if you didn't have the courage to face it.
Right as you were about to enter, you stopped. You pivoted on your heels, and turned back towards your mother with one last smile. Your smile was bright and genuine, like your hopes for the future. Like a bird ready to fly for the first time, you were ready to embrace the new world.
"I'll see you later okay? In the meantime, I'll change some lives!"
She looked surprised for a second, before bursting out into laughter. Sure it was a bit of a corny statement, but it got you excited for the future! She waved you off with an encouraging smile, and you finally turned around to walk to the plane.
Questions flooded your mind. What would Rome be like? Would you make new friends? How different would the culture be? All of that, and much more had bounced through your mind like echo in a large cave. You felt so much anticipation for the future, you were practically buzzing on the spot.
The world was a place full of unknowns and uncertainties, but to face them head on was the greatest strength one could have.
You sat down in your plane seat, and before you knew it you had taken lift off. Looking out the window you could see the plane slowly float above the ground and eventually lift off into the sky. All you had to do now was wait.
Suddenly your thoughts were interrupted by a random thud against your back.
"What the-'' You looked back to see what the source of the random thud was, only to meet the eyes of a young boy. The little child stopped kicking the back of your seat and looked up at you for a second, as soon as he saw the annoyance on your face a vicious smirk growing on his face. He knew what a nuisance was being you, and quite obviously found some kind of twisted joy in it. Think think, your luck would be so sad you would end up being placed right in front of a little satan spawn of a kid.
You turned to his mother, was a look that screamed 'what are you going to do about this?!'. She barely even gave you a glance, before turning back to her phone. It was obvious she was the type of mother to ignore her child rather than discipline him, letting him do whatever he wants and cultivating him into an even bigger spoiled brat. You would have felt pity for the boy, if he hadn't been kicking your seat in.
This... would be a long flight.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, EXPRESS AIRLINES WELCOMES YOU TO ROME
As soon as the plane landed, you bolted out of the plane. Once you made it far enough away from the little demon and his mother, you let out a breath of relief that you had been holding for the entire flight.
After picking up your luggage, you finally noticed how full this airport had been compared to the one that you came from. The abundance of people was insane. Perhaps it was people going home from the summer, or maybe it was because Rome was naturally just a larger city than your hometown. Still, it felt like you could lose yourself so easily in a place like this. The abundance of people would sweep you away, and you would become just another faceless individual in the crowd.
You tried to pull yourself away from the masses, but their hold on you was too strong. You just bumped around like a ping pong ball, bumping into people, apologizing, bumping into another person and so on and so forth.
It was like an endless barrage of humans. You thought you would never make it out, into a firm hand grasped your arm and pulled you away from all the people.
You look towards your savior. She was a tall girl, about your age with long dark hair that was swept to the side.
Her deep turquoise eyes stared at you in concept as she dragged you away, long eyelashes moving gracefully with every blink. Her hand was soft, yet firm. You could feel the calluses on her hands and they wrapped around yours. She gave you the impression of someone graceful yet tough, a temptress that could slice down an army with a single blade under her care.
If you truly looked close enough, you would be able to see the dark circles that decorated her under eyes, and the slight crease on her brows from constant stress. Even with all of that, she was still the most gorgeous woman you've ever seen in your life. You wondered what kind of life she would have to live in order to be under so much stress.
Once you and the brown haired girl made it to an empty space in the airport she let out a sigh of frustration, resting her hand on her temple and massaged her brows to calm her rage.
"Are you [Name] [Lastname]?" She questioned, turning her eyes back to yours. Her voice was stern yet smooth. She spoke perfect English. The only hint of her being of foreign descent was the soft accent that was underlying her pronunciation of vowels. It was so soft and subtle, you couldn't pinpoint where it was from exactly, if you had to guess it would be some kind of Nordic country. You have to admit, it was very pleasant on the ears.
A hum of surprise left your mouth as you nodded. "Yeah, I am. How did you know?" Despite her anger, you could tell she didn't have any ill-intent towards you, which is why you felt comfortable enough to give her an affirmative. Unconsciously you tilted your head in confusion. How did this woman know your name? Did she need you for something?
Crossing her arms, the mysterious lady leaned back on the wall and looked at you with a judging gaze. "Are you seriously this ignorant? I'm your guide for C.Maximus. I'm supposed to pick you up, and give you a tour of the dorms and campus."
You let out a small 'oh' and then paused for a second before replying. "Well, in the letter I got it never said anything about a tour guide."
"Letter? What year do you think we're in? The viking age?" The girl said, raising an eyebrow. "They obviously sent you an email, did you even check?"
"Oh... I don't really check my email. I get a lot of spam, so I kinda let it pile up."
The girl in front of you face palmed, hard. You could physically hear the sound of her hand hitting her face at your stupidity, causing you to recoil at the impact. It sounded like it hurt. As you stood there awkwardly, you could hear the sound of her muttering something in annoyance in her mother tongue. Although you didn't know exactly what she was saying, the tone of her voice was enough to tell you it probably wasn't something so nice.
You wouldn't lie and say you didn't feel a bit bad for stressing the poor woman out so much, but a part of you also thought she was overreacting a bit. But then again, who are you to judge her? Maybe she already had enough on her plate, maybe she was secretly assembling a team of humanities 13 strongest soldiers to fight against the gods to save the world or something along those lines.
Ok that was a tad bit dramatic, but nonetheless you had no clue what she was going through and really didn't have a right to judge her.
"Listen, I'm sorry." You said awkwardly, as you played with the hem of your shirt. "I know I'm acting like an idiot, but I'm new to all of this and I have no clue what I'm doing. So please help me, even if I'm a moron."
The girl's gaze softened ever so slightly after you said that, and a sigh let there lips. "No, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have lashed out at you like that. I've just been... frustrated recently. It's not your fault in the slightest." The girl paused for a second as if to think about her next words before turning back to you. "I think we started off on the wrong foot. Let's try this again..."
She placed her hand on her heart and gave you a soft smile. In an odd way, the tired yet tender look in her eyes made her appear more endearing. You felt heat rise to your cheek the more you thought about how nice a smile looked on her.
"You can call me Brunhilde, I do hope we will get along."
Yeah, let's have a good year!" You gave her a smile of your own back. The small serene moment the two of you shared was suddenly interrupted by a soft melody coming from Brunhilde's phone. She fished out the phone from her pocket, and took a second to check the caller identity before picking up.
"Hello?" She said, lifting the phone up to her ear. On the other end of the phone you hear the murmuring of another voice, but you couldn't make out any actual words, phrases or even the gender of the mysterious individual. As the voice on the other end of the line talked, the woman beside you slightly none and occasionally let out a soft 'okay'. You tried not to listen in on the conversation, but it was hard not to consider she was right in front of you.
After a short minute of being on the phone, she shut her phone off and turned to you with a closed-eye smile.
"Good news, the limo's here to bring us to the campus." She said casually. 'Come on, they're waiting for us outside."
She ushered you to the exit of the airport, as you followed her wide-eyed. The way she had said that a limousine was waiting for you two outside so casually shocked you. Brunhilde has mentioned it so offhandedly, as if she got lugged around in a limousine everyday. Then again, she probably did in fact take a limo everywhere she went.
For a moment, you forgot that most of the people at C.Maximus were children of the richest people in the world. For the next couple of years, you would be surrounded by complete trust fund kids. In fact, you've heard rumors that even some children of royalty attended the school! You always assumed that the people at this school would be stuck up and spoiled, but Brunhilde seemed surprisingly down to earth. If you didn't know any better, you would assume she was just like you.
Actually, the more you looked at her the differences between your two became obvious. The clothes she was wearing were top quality and designer brands. It wasn't some kind of tacky supreme shirt either, the clothes were nicely tailored to fit her shape and had a nice design too. Meanwhile, your clothes had come from low-end shops and thrift stores. The difference didn't end there, it ranged from the quality of her jewelry to even the sheen of her hair. In her presence, you honestly felt like you were dressed like a hobo.
It was kinda a kick in the ass too, you always thought you had a nice style and sense of fashion.
Once the two of you made it outside, you covered your eyes to child yourself from the bright August sun. The glaring light gave you an annoying headache, and the hot city of Rome caused sweat to build up on your neck. It was uncomfortable, even more so than it was in your hometown. You took a mental note to remember that bright light, and jet-lag really didn't mix well. You felt like shit.
"[Name]! Our ride is over here." Brunnhilde called out to you, walking you over to the fancy vehicle.
The long, slick, black limousine sat in front of the airport entrance,ready to pick the two of you up. You had to blink a few times before realizing it wasn't just a figment of your imagination. It was so clean that it reflected the sunlight back into your eyes, making it hard to look at the car. Not a speck of dust could be found on the outside either, like it was recently polished with the finest of materials. You could have sworn it was so clean, you could eat off of it.
Beside the limousine stood a chauffeur, wearing a perfectly fitted uniform and cap. It looked like something out of a movie, too perfect to be true. His smile was bright and inviting, urging you two to enter the car.
Brunhilde stepped inside of the sheen car, and took a seat inside. Just as you were about to follow her in, you paused. The inside was even more spectacular than the outside. It was like a mini party room, with LED lights illuminating the small room, giving it a sort of blueish-green hue. A large leather couch took up half of the car, while on the other side there was a mini bar.
"Holy crap." You muttered in awe, as you sat down. Suddenly you gasped in surprise once you felt plush cushions that cost the seats. It was soft, you felt like you had just sat on a cloud. Looking across you could see a series of non-alcoholic beverages lining the self-served bar. The majority of the drinks were brands you didn't recognize, all in a foreign language. The only beverage you recognized was the bottled water, which was of course Fiji water.
Brunhilde picked up a small carbonated beverage and let out a small giggle at your reaction.
"So, are you excited to start the new school year?" She asked kindly. "C.Maximus operates kind of oddly compared to other schools. Instead of the normal four years, we only have three. Year ten, eleven and twelve. I'm in year ten, so that makes me your senior!"
As she talked, you took a look at the various different beverages available to you. Most of them were in Italian, unsurprisingly. You were in Rome after all.
"I see." You said as you picked up a bottle, trying to see if you would be able to understand anything on it. "So, got any tips for me, senior?"
Brunhilde leaned back in her chair with a thoughtful hum, and took a sip of her drink. Then she looked back at you with a smile. "You should be fine. Someone like you should survive just fine."
"What's that supposed to mean?" You responded as your hands roamed the limo more. There were a number of random buttons, each with a different function. In your wake of curiosity, you touched one and suddenly a compartment in the car opened and inside was a series of high-end snacks.
She laughed as you gasped in shock at the car's actions. "I only mean to say that you're cute. You know, looks go far in a place like this. That, along with status."
You picked up one of the snacks that was in the compartment. It was filled with fresh pastries. Things like macarons, tiramisu, cakes of all kinds. They all looked super high-quality, in fact some of the pastries were lined with edible gold to make them seem more appealing.
Picking up macaron in your hand, you inspected the small dish. After popping it into your mouth, you couldn't contain your hum of joy. It was so good. The filling was caramel flavored, and the outside shell was crunchy yet soft in the perfect combination.
'This is so good!" You exclaimed, picking up another one and urging the girl beside you to try. She laughed at your behavior, and took a bite of the one you handed her.
"You know, you're kinda odd." She said teasingly, after finishing the macaron. The girl poured some kind of carbonated beverage in a small wine glass and handed it to you. "You seem so astounded at everything. Have you never been in a limo before or something?"
You swirled the liquid in the glass and took a small hesitant sip. It tasted like strawberries, it was incredibly delicious just like the macaron.
Setting the drink in your drink in your lap, you traced the rim of the glass in embarrassment to avoid eye-contact. "Actually, I haven't." She laughed lightly in response as if your words were one big joke.
"Oh come on." She nudged you with a sly smile. "You don't expect me to believe your parents actually drive themselves places, that way too much work. At least tell me your parents own a Bugatti or a Ferrari or something."
You just looked out the window at the passing by land. You hadn't realized it until now, but the car had actually started moving quite a while back. There wasn't any indication to show the car had started, no sound of an engine, no feeling of bumping from the car. It was eerily smooth, as if you weren't even in a car.
"My family could never afford something like this." You mumbled, as you inspected the glass in your hands. Just as you thought, the liquid was completely still. "In fact, this car could pay off the mortgage for our house thrice."
Brunhilde paused in shock and she lowered the wine glass from her mouth. It seemed that wasn't the answer she was expecting. "What do you mean? You're going to C.Maximus Institute, right? This should be pocket change for you."
"Not me." You shook your head. "I'm on a scholarship."
"You're on a scholarship?" The dark-haired girl questioned. Once you nodded in affirmation, she seemed to stiffen. The look on her face had gone from friendly, to nervous. Brunhilde set her drink down, and turned to look you in the eye.
"Listen to me very carefully." The girl whispered, leaning a bit closer to you. "You need to lay low. Don't make any big scenes, don't do anything out of the ordinary and if someone tells you to do something then you do it without complaint. That's the only way for you to survive in this school."
Unconsciously, her words caused you to lean back in your seat to get away from her and straighten up in response. Your voice got lower as you looked her in the eye, a hint of disbelief in your voice.
"Are you threatening me?"
Her eyes widened at your accusation, and she quickly shook her head.
"No not at all!" She exclaimed. "I'm just trying to warn you. The people here, don't really take kindly to those who are less wealthy. Even people who make well over six figures, are ostracized here. You need to be careful, I'm just trying to look out for you."
"Are you serious..." You muttered under your breath. Six figures? And even they were still bullied. God, you couldn't even imagine what it would be like if people found out how much your family makes. You would be crucified or something!
"Yes, I'm serious." Brunhild replied solemnly. "I'm not supposed to say this, but C.Maximus isn't what you think it is."
Her words cause you to lean closer in anticipation. You wondered how the school of everyone's dreams could be so different than expectations and visuals made It seem. With the way she talked, it was as if just the mention of the name gave her an uncomfortable feeling. Could the school that seemed so perfect truly be so flawed? A school made for only the best of the best, it wasn't possible. Was it?
"Students at this school are forced to sign a non disclosure agreement, saying all things that happen inside the school shall not be discussed off campus or to outsiders, but it's just wrong to let you walk in blindly. I can't do that to you.." The girl trailed off, a frustrated look crossing her face.
"The students, teachers, faculty, everyone, they're all bad people. Borderline evil, even." Brunhild explained. "This is something no one outside of our school knows, we all put up this perfect act but it's a lie. In fact, we actually have the highest suicide rate of all disciplinary institutions."
"The culture of our environment is incredibly toxic, anyone who is less than perfect is labeled as a freak. And the higher your parents earn, or more publicity they have, the higher up you are on the food chain. This school is like a jungle."
The girl then grabbed your hands with her own, and looked in your eyes sternly. "And you... You will be like fodder to them. That's why the school accepts scholarship students in the first place. To give the students a proper target to set their sights on, instead of each other. The faculty isn't any better either. They're all just predators, looking for someone weaker than them to feast on"
"Tomorrow the school will make your enrolment official." She said, letting go of your hands and looking out the window. By now the bustling city outside the airport had turned into thick forest, something you didn't even realize in your time talking to Brunhild.
"I don't have time to explain the whole hierarchy of the school, but I would recommend you terminate your scholarship immediately." The girl frantically said. "I doubt they would fund your flight home seeing as you will no longer be a student, but almost anything is better than attending this school. Please, listen to me and get out of here!"
You were shocked. You didn't know what to say, you didn't even know how to respond. Was it true? Were you really just some kind of sacrificial pawn for these sick and twisted rich kids? You were like a lamb to the slaughter, just another nameless nobody to fuel the school.
You wanted to deny it, but it honestly made sense. C.Maximus high was a private school, they didn't need to hand out scholarships at all. Besides, there really wasn't a reason for you to get one at all. You weren't particularly athletic, or smart or famous. You were just... you.
Then again, it was you who was given the scholarship. It was you who was given this opportunity. How could you possibly go back now, go back to your poor mother who was rooting for you all this way just to not even attend the school for a single day!? It wouldn't be fair to her. You wanted to make her proud, and how could you do that if you didn't at least try?
Perhaps to someone like Brunhild, a scholarship means nothing. For her, it was simply a school, nothing more and nothing less. But to you, someone growing up in poverty, someone growing up around a broken neighborhood this school was like a golden ticket. She couldn't understand how something like this could save your life and save the life of the people you love.
You didn't care! It didn't matter if you were going to be bullied for your clothes, or your shoes or your whatever! You just didn't want this to slip through your fingers, you didn't want to go back to your normal life knowing you could have made more out of yourself. Maybe you were nothing more to these people than a bug, and if that was the case then you would be the greatest god damn bug to ever live!
"I'm sorry." You muttered, looking away from the girl. "I wont leave. If these rich people want me gone, they're gonna have to chase me out with flaming pitchforks."
Hearing your willingness to stay, Brunhild nodded her head. In a way, she could respect your resolve, although she thought it was incredibly foolish. You had no clue what kinds of difficulties you would face in a school like this, but it wasn't her responsibility to take care of you. The girl warned you, and that's the most she could do. From here, this was your decision to stay or not. She only hoped your skin would be as thick as the other students were cruel.
Suddenly the car stopped and the door on your side opened. The chauffeur greeted you with a smile. It was the same friendly smile as before, although now you weren't ignorant enough to ignore the undertones of the smile. It felt like a veil had been pulled off of your eyes, and you could see things for what they were. His smile was eery and sinister, and sent a chill down your spine.
"We're here ladies. Welcome to C.Maximus Institute." The man seethed out behind his fake smile.
Without looking back you stepped out of the limousine, towards your new future. The three of you still had a bit of a walk to the school, since the parking lot was off to the side of the school. However even from a distance you could see the structure of the famous school.
The large Victorian castle-like building poked above the thick forestry. On the very top of the main building of the school, flew a flag with the school's logo. It was the caduceus symbol, an image concocted of two serpents twisting around a staff with wings. It symbolized power, the core value of the school.
You stared at the flag with contempt in your eyes. You will not fear, you will not falter and you will not yield.
This school is yours to concur.