Welcome.

[trustmods]

It doesn't matter where you last were or what you were doing. What matters is that you're waking up in a decently comfortable bed in a room that's completely unfamiliar. You may feel a bit groggy, like you've slept for too long, but that will fade in time. Welcome to Graceside Preparatory Academy. You may want to pick up the key to your room before you leave, though don't worry. Your door won't lock automatically so you won't be locked out if you've forgotten to pick it up. The hallway outside your room is most likely full of other confused students by now and should you turn around to look at the door of the room you just left, you'll find a nameplate with your name printed on it. There's a single word underneath it with no explanation. This is your title, but don't worry about that right now. Depending on when you left your room there may be a clock chiming in the foyer up ahead. It seems like it's seven, though it's difficult to tell if it's seven in the morning or seven at night. There aren't any windows, after all. Should you venture into the room with the clock, you'll find that the only exit is closed - there's absolutely no way to break down that steel bulkhead. It looks like you're stuck in here for the time being. The foyer also holds some very interesting information. There's a bulletin board with twenty-nine pictures on it. Beside each picture is some very specific and very familiar information. Feel free to examine it. The bulletin board is large enough for plenty of you to gather around and gawk. Don't try to get at it though, that glass in front of it is very thick. If you try to break it, you'll find out the hard way that it's shatterproof. Sorry about that. Perhaps even more of a concern than the glass is the list beside the profiles. It looks like a set of rules. You might want to examine those, though they're not providing much of an explanation for why you're here or how you got here. So relax and get to know your fellow students. You might be stuck here for awhile.

Comments

[blazeit]

Just randomly throwing out a cardinal direction also means approximately fucking nothing if you're not providing a context.

[ And he can't really hold that against her, it just seems like a smart idea to him to keep his aces up his sleeve for the time being. ]

... And it's Bakugou. Bakugou Katsuki, if you want the full deal.

[sunsong]

[ She squints at him. Is this guy completely new, or...? ]

Area D. That mean fuck all to you, or is this weirder than I thought originally?

[ GOD...what is her damn life. ]

Just Sol, here. [ Her surname doesn't matter. She doesn't even remember it, really; she'd only been two when Altered began manifesting. She can't remember the people who'd brought her into the world. ]

[blazeit]

Yeah, that still means jack shit to me. What country is it in? I'm from Tokyo, Japan.

[ That... name sounds suspiciously like what you would call a quarantine zone or something... ]

[sunsong]

Not sure where it is. But if you haven't heard of it, something's fucking weird.

[ Every country sends its Altered there. This guy hadn't even flinched at her mentioning his ability - so clearly he has one. What Altered doesn't know about Area D? ]

I know for a fucking fact Japan's sending its Altered to Area D just like every other country is.

[ It doesn't sound like she's arguing with him about what he said, though; Sol crosses her arms and frowns, but it's more thoughtful than confrontational. ]

...Guess we're on the "weirder than I originally thought" track. Greaaaat.

[blazeit]

[ He's with her on "weirder than I originally thought", so he'll verge into a different topic: ]

Okay, this is a sidetrack, but... what do you mean by Altered, exactly.

[sunsong]

You have an ability, don't you? Humans with mutations, whatever you wanna call it...at home [ she's just going with that because they seem to be operating on different wavelengths here world-wise, and while Sol has no clue how that works she's just going to ignore it for the moment ] that's an "Altered".

"Operation Start", "Greek Tragedy"...those are Altered abilities. Well, they don't need the fancy fucking name, but everyone seems to give them names like that, you know? That quack of a doctor can make scalpels and medical shit out of his body. That woman of the North can make you see illusions that'll really kill you - well, this isn't her work, though...

[ Sol would be able to recognize at least that much. ]

What would you call that?

[blazeit]

Having a quirk. But, I mean, at this point it's even weirder for somebody to be quirkless... we're on the third generation of people with quirks, I think? So up to 80% of the population has some sort of quirk, even if it's essentially useless.

[ Wrong series, but. Wow such superpower basically. ]

... Wait, so you're saying people like that where you come from get fucking quarantined?

[ If there's a vocalization of the sentiment "???!?!" then he's just made it. ]

[sunsong]

Nah, not quarantined.

[ That's not the word for it, exactly - though it might amount to the same thing... ]

Area D's a prison island. And once you're in, you don't get out. ...Guess it's kinda like a quarantine, but that might be a little nicer.

[ She's staring at him a little, her arms still crossed. Sol's trying to picture it: a world where it's more normal to be Altered than it isn't. Where you don't have to worry about being imprisoned or killed for something you couldn't even fucking help to start with.

She wonders how pathetic it is that she can't even really manage to picture it. ]

[blazeit]

That's so fucked up. [ And then, for emphasis: ] That's so fucked up. And also sounds stupid as hell, like — oh yeah, let's just lock all the people with superhuman powers together, that's going to go totally fucking peachy.

[ At least, that's how he imagines it'd go if it were where he'd come from, but... he's realizing now just how strange all of this is. The divergence is way too large to just be some sort of dialectic difference, this is whole different worlds in existence. ]

... What... the hell...?

[sunsong]

[ She laughs, suddenly. Because really, it was a stupid fucking plan. Nothing's blown up on the people who did it (yet), but living in Area D isn't a daydream. Not like living in the real world was, either, but - ]

Never said it wasn't a stupid fucking idea, but that's just how it is. We're...really not from the same place at all, huh?

[ Sol has no idea how that's possible.

But she doesn't know how to explain a lot of things that happen in her day to day life. ]

...So what happens with people with Quirks? You just...go about your everyday life?

[blazeit]

Yeah, this is actually really fucking insane. Like, I'm trying not to think about it too hard because then... seriously, what the hell kind of situation is this?

[ Surely INTERGALACTIC KIDNAPPERS is not a logical conclusion to jump to. And yet. ]

And well, yeah, most people do. Some people become villains, others become professional heroes, and... it's pretty much exactly what it sounds like. Villains go fucking shit up, heroes go putting it right.

[sunsong]

Fucking insane, like you said. There's just...no other description for this shit that even halfway fits.

[ AND YET... ]

You a hero?

[blazeit]

Not yet... someday, though. Still in training, I guess. There's rules and shit, you know, it's all regulated.

[ He's still a minor and all that. Not that he really cares, he would love to just jump into things if he could. ]

[sunsong]

...That's pretty cool, all the same.

[ and somehow really innocent, but she doesn't add that part. ]

[blazeit]

I... guess. Kinda hard to say when it's what you're used to.

[ And yep, he sure is feeling like he's got it easy compared to Area D... ]

Anyway, you're in this room? [ He points to 23. ] D'you mind if I check something out?

[sunsong]

Nah, knock yourself out. But if you do anything creepy, I'm gonna punch you.

[ SOL...but no she steps to the side and makes an expansive gesture. Go ahead, broski. ]

[blazeit]

I'll keep my hands in my pockets, if that makes you feel better...

[ Besides, all he really wants to do is see if the layout is the same, so he's only in there for a minute or so anyway before turning back around. ]

... So I guess it's safe to assume that all the rooms are pretty much the same. Dunno if this is useful or not, but... I guess the only thing differentiating them are the nameplates.

[sunsong]

Well, I guess that makes sense...why go to the trouble of making them all fancy?

[ THEY'RE PROBABLY NOT THAT SPECIAL... ]

I got a key to mine, too.

[blazeit]

Yeah, same here. Seems like kind of a weird set-up, though.

[ What's the point of being able to keep others out... ]

[sunsong]

At least we'll have privacy?

[ SHRUGS. She can be thankful for a room of her own, honestly. ]

[blazeit]

... Yeah, I can't get really enthused about that being the silver lining. But I guess it's better than jack shit.