Chapter 1: The Beginning
Chapter 2: Transfer Student
Chapter 3: Second Impressions

I miss the good days when everyone could just look up at the sunny skies and listen to the birds chirping, as they flapped their wings against the cool breeze. Some people are lucky enough to still be able to relive those peaceful days, but others take on a different kind of lifestyle.

When you have certain "gifts" life isn't always peaceful and relaxing. Throwing fireballs, raising the dead, and being attacked by ferocious beasts on a daily basis isn't exactly normal or comforting, unless you attend Gifted Academy. The name itself gives you an idea that this isn't your everyday school you sign up for.

Here, it's all about survival of the fittest. If you're not strong physically and mentally you're not going to make it very long. If you have a gift, or gifts this is the place for you. Of course this isn't your typical learning environment--the teachers consist of demons and all other types of monsters; even some of the students are beasts.

The school is also arranged according to clans; there are a total of six clans. The main clans that have been classified so far are: Supernatural, Evolution, Vampire, Shadow, Transformation, and Warrior--they each possess their own unique powers and abilities.

The most well-known clans are the Supernatural and Evolution, for their past rivalry in the clan wars. Now their rivalry has turned into a partial friendship, making the academy more advanced and diverse.

In addition to all the weird things I've already mentioned, there's plenty more to be told. Once you enroll you cannot leave until you graduate; the only way to graduate is by passing the final exam.

Every two years the academy sets up one of these special "exams" to test every student's performance in a list of categories. I don't mean sitting at a desk, bubbling in answers; I mean fighting monsters, overcoming life-threatening traps, and even facing classmates...to the death.

No one is safe...no one. With just a few days remaining, everyone did their best to prepare for the start of the exams.

****

"Beep, beep, beep", that was the sound of the alarm clock going off at six o'clock in the morning.

"James, could you shut that off," said William.

James slid one hand out from underneath his cover, snapped his finger, and the beeping silenced. He ran his fingers through his jet-black hair, as he got up to check the calendar.

"Just a few more days until the big test, Will. We have to start training."

William yawned. "Can we at least get breakfast first?"

James threw a pair of pants at him and they landed on his head.

"Well, get dressed," he chuckled.

James got dressed and made sure to put on his diamond statuette necklace his mother had given him--he didn't go anywhere without it. They both finished getting ready and made their way to the cafeteria.

The walls of the hallways were silver, the floor had blue and black tile with gold stars engraved in them, and the doors slid open when you approached them. The cafeteria was amazing: floating tables, a game room, an indoor swimming pool; it had it all.

"Hey, I'll go get us some pancakes," said James. "Find us a table."

"Alright," William replied, rubbing the crust from his eyes.

James walked to the long line of impatient kids waiting for their food. They started complaining, and the lunch ladies started yelling. The three women were always in a bad mood, you would be too if you were dead and your soul was stuck on earth. They're not ghosts, their ghouls.

"Don't rush us", said the ghoul ladies yelled.

James smiled.

"Cindy, Becky; hey guys."

"Ooh, get up here boy," they said, as their blue complexions brightened.

Everyone turned and gave him a threatening look, as if they were saying, "Do you want to die early?"

He hesitated. "Are you sure?"

"They'll be fine," said Becky.

He walked passed the crowd and cut to the front, noticing all the dirty looks he was given.

"How's it going," he said.

"Other than being dead and having to cook for you kids every day, everything's fine," she said.

A loud crash came from the kitchen and another dead lunch lady stormed out.

"What's going on, Lucille?"

She looked surprised. "Does my eye deceive me? Is that little ol' James?"

(Oh yeah, did I mention she only has one eye. Long story short she was a gardener, who had a habit of finding worms and sticking them on her face-weird I know-and it went unnoticed until one day a bird paid her an unexpected visit. Bird + Worm face; I'll let you do the math.)

"I haven't seen you in a while," she said.

"Sorry, I've been training a lot lately."

"Oh yeah. Are you ready for your first exam?"

"Well, William and I have been working hard. I think we'll do fine."

"I'll be cheering for you guys." Cindy said with a crooked smile.

James had an urge to laugh, but instead he just smiled back.

"Thanks."

"You want any syrup," asked Lucille.

"Sure."

She reached out and her hand broke off, knocking the bottle onto the floor.

"Um...how do you guys cook, exactly?"

A fireball shot from out of the kitchen and flew over James' head "Becky, go get the dragon before it burns the food again."

James sighed and observed the black ring the fireball left on the wall behind him.

"Never mind."

"This lines getting to big," said Cindy. "Where's Jennifer."

"I'm here!" A girl came running towards the line.

She had long blonde hair, hazel eyes, and she was wearing a green and white plaid shirt.

"You're late...again," said Lucille.

She lowered her head as if she was ashamed. "I'm sorry. I've been up all night training; it won't happen again."

James interrupted. "Don't be so hard on her, Lucille."

He sat his tray down and reached out for a handshake.

"Hey, I'm James."

She backed away with a worried expression. She spoke with hesitation. "I'm Jennifer."

Lucille cleared her throat, trying to get James' attention.

"I got to go," said Jennifer. She grabbed her apron off the wall and headed to the kitchen.

"James I need to talk to you," said Lucille. "It's about that girl."

"What about her?"

The lunch ladies all gave each other a quick glance.

"You shouldn't be around her. She's dangerous."

He looked confused. "She seemed like a nice person to me," he said.

"It might seem that way, but I'm only saying this to warn you. Just don't touch her, and don't let her touch you."

He looked over Lucille's shoulder and took glance at Jennifer; she was flipping pancakes and helping prepare trays. He didn't understand what the big problem was; all he could do was just think to himself, "Who is she?"

"Okay," he replied. He grabbed the two trays and joined William at the table.

"No syrup?"

"Um...no they ran out."

"What a drag. Oh well, I'm too hungry to just let it go to waste." He picked up his fork and knife and dug into his tray, devouring his pancakes; he showed no mercy.

"Are you going to eat yours?" He kindly asked James as he filled his mouth with pancakes.

"Um...I guess not." James said, pushing his tray away.

"Hey, do you know a girl named Jennifer?"

"Are you referring to the new transfer student?"

"Yeah, you know anything about her?"

William burped loudly. "Not much, except that she came from some "alternative" school; which I believe to be a bunch of crap."

"Alternative school?"

"Yeah, I overheard some red-head say she came from Alcatraz, William said, as chugged down his carton of milk.

James' eyes widened. "Alcatraz?! William, that's not a school, that's a prison?!"

"I'm aware of that. Now you see why I'm not buying it; there's no way she could have been there. That place closed down decades ago; we weren't even born yet.

"You're right about that, it's nothing but a tourist attraction now. But what if someone secretly reopened it; a secret prison hidden within the museum."

"Come on, there's no way someone would reopen Alcatraz." William replied, out loud.

"Shush, keep your voice down. Did you hear anything about why she might have been there?"

"No, not that I can remember. I'm not even sure anyone knows about her; she just came out of nowhere."

James looked back and saw Jennifer cooking and playing with the baby dragon.

"What could she have done," he thought to himself.

A beeping noise echoed throughout the cafeteria. A projection of Principal Ronald popped up on the wall; he spoke with a deep voice.

"Good morning, Gifted Academy. I hope everyone is having a good day so far."

A guy with a spikey Mohawk stood on top of a table and yelled out, "You know it!"

"Sit down, Tanner, before I call your mother, again."

Everyone pointed and laughed.

"Now join me as I say the Gifted Academy creed."

Everyone quieted down and positioned their fist over their heart.

"Live today, die tomorrow. Wipe out your fear of dreadful sorrow. You may be strong, you may be weak, but never let your pride take defeat. You have a gift so make it last, because any day could be your last. Gifted Academy is your sanctuary, Veritas is your home; learn and present what you know. You make the choice, you determine your fate; which "lives" will you sacrifice, who's will you save?"

The students gave a cheerful round of applause. As they cheered and clapped, a hand suddenly landed upon Ronald's shoulder.

"May I speak, sir" said a man, with a scratchy voice.

"Ugh, it's Vice-principal Crowley," said William.

A man with wild hair and a mini-goatee sat as the principal rose from his chair.

"Good morning. How's everybody doing?"

Everyone ignored him; the celebration died down and everyone went back to eating their food.

"As you all know the first test of your final exam is right around the corner and it would be a shame to lose all of you wonderful students. So getting as much training as possible before the big day should be everyone's biggest priority. So let's get everyone down to the armory and-"

Principle Ronald began to speak to him.

"Oh, I see. Uh...I've just been informed that this year's exams will be taking a non-traditional route this year. For the first time ever in Gifted academy history, the restricted sector will be allowed to participate in this year's survival exam."

Crowley felt disturbed after announcing the news.

"What did he say?" Students repeated, with disbelief. "I thought they were banned forever?"

"That'll be all for today's announcements. Now, go down to the armory and train harder than you ever have before." He had hatred, along with fear in his eyes. "You're going to have to bring you're A-game if you hope to survive."

He rose from the chair and the projection went away.

"Those were some real words of encouragement from Crowley himself." James said, sarcastically.

"I really hate that guy," said William, "He just gives me a bad vibe."

"After years of him being our mentor, I would think you'd be used to how he is, but I guess I was wrong. Don't worry about it though. We have way more important things to worry about right now."

William sighed. "I guess you're right. I didn't expect the mixed breeds to be in the exams."

"Yeah, I don't anyone was ready for that. They've never been able to join; I wonder what changed his mind."

"I don't know, but it's definitely something to think about. There's no telling what might happen this year."

William stood and stretched. "Well, I'm going to head out. You coming?"

"You go on ahead. I'll catch up."

He noticed James was staring at the new girl. He chuckled and walked off. "Good luck, man."

He threw his tray in the trash can like a Frisbee and joined the herd of students leaving. Everyone left and the cafeteria was in the process of being shut down.

"Alright, I'm heading out," said Jennifer.

"Okay, but remember not to be late tomorrow," said Lucille. "We've got a lot of hungry mouths to feed."

"Yes, ma'am." she replied, showing a little frustration.

Cindy waved and showed off her teeth. "Have fun."

Jennifer hung up her apron and made her way to the big, red sliding doors; it had a shield and two crossed swords on a golden plaque labeled: Armory.

She advanced through the hall alone, or so she thought. The sound of someone else's footsteps jumped from wall to wall. The further she went, the louder it got. She suddenly stopped, and the footsteps ceased. She looked over her shoulder, there was no one in sight.

"Is someone there?"

She went back to walking and the footsteps began again. She picked up the pace until she finally switched from a fast walk to a full sprint. She took a left down a separate hall; she pulled out a knife and cut the tip of her finger as she turned the corner. As the drops of blood hit the floor, they began to move and form into something bigger; the fluid soon formed into an exact replica of her-exact clothes and features.

They continued running until they passed by a janitor's closet. Jennifer hid inside while the clone stood guard at the door.

A shadow rose from the dark hallway and it slowly crept towards the clone. Without hesitation, the clone attacked.

"Woah! Wait!"

The clone ignored him and continued to strike. He quickly dodged her attacks and when the time was right, he skillfully disarmed her, just before he swept her off her feet.

"Are you crazy?" He said, as he stood over her. "Why do you have a weapon outside of the armory?"

The clone just stared and said nothing, and then it suddenly melted into a puddle of blood.

"What the-?" The person's eyes widened. He examined his hands; the dagger had also melted, leaving a splatter of blood within his palm. All the blood began to wash away on its own and spread itself over the walls. The blood took the shape of words: Walk away, now...Leave...Your time is running out. The words kept coming until the blood ran dry with two final words-Game Over.

As he focused on the blood-stained wall, the sound of a door slamming caught his attention. He quickly turned around. The puddle of blood, turned into droplets and began to lift off the floor and float all around him. He was cautious. He tried his best not to make any sudden movements, but little did he know, in the eyes of the killer, he was already doomed.

The air was still, and not a sound was made. He tapped one of the droplets out of curiosity and all the blood came raining down around him. He was blinded; strands of long blonde hair dangled from the ceiling behind him, and in a matter of those few seconds a dagger slid against his neck and then placed at the back of his head.

"Who are you," said Jennifer. "And what do you want with me?"

He turned around slowly and she kept the blade close to him as possible.

He could tell just from her well-placed stance that she knew her way around a blade.

"Hey." He chuckled nervously.

She arched her eyebrows, surprised at who he actually was.

"You're that guy from earlier-James, right?"

"Yeah," he sighed.

She didn't know whether to give him a round of applause for cleverly deceiving her, or to kill him where he stood.

"So, you pretend to be nice to me and then you come to take me out? Who sent you?"

"What? No one."

"Then why are you following me?"

He looked down in the corner of his eye, giving the dagger a quick glance. It was different from any other blade he had ever seen before. It had a bright red aura that seemed to glow, and it had three blades attached; the middle one being the longest and the other two which were stored inside until sent out.

He had no idea what she was talking about and he had the uncontrollable urge to swallow, but he was afraid his throat would stretch far too close to the tip of the blade.

"It's hard to talk with a blade to my throat."

She was cautious, but she gave him a chance to explain himself. She gave him the, "You better not try anything or your dead" look, and lowered her weapon. "Talk..."

He took a step back. "I wanted to ask you about your old "school"."

She looked away. "How do you know about that?"

"I just happened to hear about it."

"That's private information; no one is supposed to know about that!"

"I'm not going to tell anyone, and I'm sorry for getting into your business. I just let my curiosity get the best of me."

She sighed with frustration. "Well, you've put me in a tough spot. I can't necessarily kill you without raising suspicion to myself-me being the new kid in all."

She gripped her blade tighter, nearly cutting off the circulation in her hand.

"What am I getting in return for answering you're question?"

"I won't tell anyone about this little incident; nobody has to know. I'll even put an end to the rumors about you."

She was still skeptical about the whole situation but she let it be for the moment. "Deal. So, what are you so eager to know?"

He cleared his throat. "Why were you there, exactly?"

She leaned against the wall. "Let's just say I'm too dangerous."

"Hello? Have you not noticed what school you're at? Everyone here is dangerous."

"I'm different. I'm not just some tough fighter; I'm a weapon. That's why I needed to be locked away."

"But I thought that place was shut down a long time ago?

"It was...for a certain period of time."

"So the tourist attraction is just a distraction to keep everyone's eyes away from something hidden away?"

"I can't exactly answer that, just know that there are a lot of places that aren't what they seem to be. The truth stares us in the face, but we fall prey to a mirage. I'm sure the victims of your clan understand that more than anyone."

"You make a good point. I'll take that into consideration. When the time came, who got the chance to send you away?"

She crossed her arms. "I didn't give anyone the satisfaction. I turned myself in. Once I told him how bad I was, Alcatraz was my new home."

James was puzzled. "So, the Warden just took your word for it and locked you up?"

"Well I have to admit it wasn't that simple. I had to convince them a little; he soon realized I was in the right place."

"Why would you do that?"

She hid behind her hair. "I lost my way a long time ago. No family or friends to go to; only enemies. Everything I have ever loved has been taken away from me, so I traveled to different parts of the world, hoping to make a new start for myself, but in the end that never worked out. After years of running and self-evaluating, I decided it was time I stopped and just did the right thing for once in my life."

"You think rotting in prison is the right thing to do?"

"I did for a while until someone paid me a visit; he changed my way of thinking, he told me I had unfinished business I needed to take care of."

She lowered her head and whispered to herself. "They will pay for what they did to me."

A tear fell and splashed onto the wax-covered floor. James went up to hug her but she avoided him.

"What's wrong? I'm just trying to help."

"There's no point. I hurt whoever I come in contact with."

"You haven't hurt me."

"Oh really...so why is blood leaking down your neck?"

"What are you-"

He was confused. He touched his neck and looked down at his fingers; they were covered in his own blood.

"I think it's better if we just forget all this happened and go our separate ways."

James just stood there. He couldn't say anything; he was lost for words.

She backed off the wall and sighed. "I'm not sure if I should declare you as a friend or foe. Don't take it personal. I can't trust anyone anymore...not after what happened."

"What do you mean?"

"Forget about it. I think it's better if we end things like this. You'll be a lot safer the less you know about me. You're very nice and you're the only one who's shown me any positive attention since I've gotten here; thank you. I'd feel bad if I let another person get hurt over my stupid mistakes."

She walked off snapping her fingers. All of a sudden the blood, which made the room look like a serial killer's bachelor party, all came together in a puddle. It all went rushing towards her, mysteriously being sucked away inside of her strange blade.

"See you in the armory."

All James could do was watch. He couldn't help but think about the bitter past she must have experienced that made her into the overly-cautious person he had just witnessed. He sat in the darkness of the hall for a while, alone with his thoughts, as he looked down at his hand full of blood.