The city of Vale was a bustling hub of movement but today was more so especially. The Huntsman School for the region, Beacon Academy, was starting the first semester of the new year and therefore, many students and their families had made their way to the city for it. Walking among the crowds, her bright blonde hair standing above the rest at 6'0", was a girl who seemed more out of her element than most. Dusk Solveig stared at her new scroll, trying to adjust the GPS to help find her destination. For the past hour, she'd been walking around the city trying to find the rendezvous point where an airship would take her and other students to their new school but, as far as she knew, she was the only one who was as hopelessly lost as she was. Dusk came from a village far, far away from any of the big cities so coming to Vale, arguably one of the most industrious and diverse capitals in the world, was a shock to her system, hell, she was still adjusting to using her scroll properly.
She followed the path her scroll was showing her until it glitched out and came up with an error message. She sighed in frustration, closing the device and sliding it into the pocket of her purple leather jacket. She decided that for now she could get along on her own, without the use of a scroll she didn't know how to use. She looked up and around herself and the crowds. She was in the middle of a street lined with shops and other small businesses. She saw a bakery, specializing in Mistralian baked goods and a toy shop, where she saw a man and his son walk out with a replica Atlesian Bullhead. What caught her attention was a shop with smashed windows and police tape covering the area out the front. There was a man in a police uniform talking to a short, elderly man, the police officer scrawling down notes as the elderly man spoke. Dusk looked up at the top of the glass window which remained intact and she could make out "From Dust, til Dawn" printed on the glass. A few bystanders spoke behind her. "Another robbery? That's the fourth one this week." A shrill voice said.
"Yep." A deeper voice said. "You have to wonder what the police are doing about it." The voices continued to chatter until they blended into the rest of the crowd. The officer finished talking with the old man, so Dusk made her way over. Her Father told her that if she ever felt lost, to find a person in uniform as they could always be trusted. "Excuse me, sir?" She said to the officer's back. He turned around, standing eye to eye with the girl which took him aback but he quickly regained his composure. Dusk pulled out her scroll and pointed to the destination written in the GPS. "Do you know how to get to this place?"
Dusk was now on her way with a newfound sense of direction. The officer had given her very clear instructions and now she felt comfortable in knowing where she had to go. She still couldn't get used to the city though. Even with the guidance she had gotten, the city of Vale seemed like a maze with endless streets and alleyways that ended up who knows where. As she was contemplating this, she passed one such alleyway, exactly the same as the others she was walking past all day except this one in particular had some strange figures inside. There was a tall man, covered in a black suit. He was talking down to someone that Dusk couldn't quite make out, except for the off-white shoulder cape that covered the top half of the wearer's body. Dusk stared at them as she walked until the suited man's gaze rose from the one he was talking to and pierced Dusk's eyes. She felt a chill come across her body and snapped her head forwards. And so, she kept walking.
There were many students gathered at the meeting point where the airship would take them into Beacon. Towards the back of the pack, a man stood above his peers at 6'4", his silver hair moving in the wind as he looked over the people around him. These would be his classmates for the next three years so he wanted to get a good look so he would know what to expect. He started to zone out a bit when he felt a soft punch to his shoulder. He snapped back to reality as a man walked beside him. He was dressed in brown and had a sword at his hip, his hair was greying but he kept it fashionable, having it shaved on the sides and slicked back. The man chuckled as he came to the boy's side. "Quite a promising looking group, isn't it Rai?" He said to the boy. Raiden adjusted the straps on his chest that kept his long sword on his back, a habit he developed to help when he was nervous.
"Yeah." Was all he said. The man looked at his son with a smile and then looked back at the crowd of students.
"Y'know, back when I went here, the first person you make eye contact with became your partner for the next 3 years." Raiden's eyes widened before they shot to the ground and his dad let out a hearty laugh before patting the boy on the back. "Don't worry about it, son. That's for initiation so relax." Raiden let out a long breath before levelling his gaze again, turning to his Dad with an annoyed look. Duncan chuckled at the boy and rubbed the back of his head. "Raiden, your Mother and I are so proud of you." The older man began. "We've seen you grow into a fine young man and I hope Beacon will help mold you into something greater." A small smile grew across Raiden's face as his Father continued. "Ha, it only feels like yesterday when we finished working on her." Duncan said, gesturing to the sword on Raiden's back. Yes, the two of them had spent many an afternoon, evening and late night working on Raiden's prized longsword.
Raiden was a capable fighter who became exceptional when he was up close and personal with an opponent, so the two worked together to create a weapon that would take advantage of this skillset. The result of that labor was "Iris". A longsword that transformed into a high caliber, automatic shotgun that could still be fired when in its melee form. When the blade was finished, Raiden was so excited that he bolted out of the workshop and began whacking at the training dummy he had in the backyard, much to the dismay of his mother. Iris had been with him through it all, from his early training, to his days at Signal Academy. Now she would see him through his days at Beacon and beyond. Iris was basically family to Raiden, and his trusted partner on the battlefield. Raiden closed his eyes, remembering all this until he heard his Dad beginning to choke up. He turned to the man and put his hand on his shoulder. "It's alright, Dad, please don't cry in public. Please." Raiden said. Duncan wiped his eye and let out a bellowing laugh.
"Oh, don't mind me. Something about an old man seeing off the new generation brings a tear to my eye." Duncan said to his son and this time they both laughed. Suddenly, the students all began to make a commotion as the airships began to land, signaling to Raiden and his Father that their time now was short. Duncan held out his hand to Raiden. "Alright, Son. Looks like this'll be it for now. Make sure that you work hard and if you do, you'll be rewarded tenfold." He said as a final piece of advice. Raiden chuckled and pushed the man's hand aside and pulled him in for a hug.
"Bye, Dad. Take care of Mum for me. I'll miss you both." He said to his Father.
"Ah, don't fret about us. We'll stay busy enough and you certainly will be with your learning." Duncan said pulling away from his son, his hands firm on the boy's shoulders. "Good luck, son. I know you'll make us proud." With that, Duncan began to walk away before he was finally out of sight. Raiden turned back and looked at all the people making their way onto the airships. He ran his hand through his hair and cracked a smile. He was finally here, at the place where he would become a Huntsman. He began on his path towards his dream, and his first destination was onto the airship before him.
Somewhere else at the pick-up site stood two women. One was hunched over the other, checking and fretting and the other one allowed her to do so begrudgingly. Samara Lorn looked over her daughter as a final check before she would fly away from her for a semester. "Okay, so your luggage should already be at the school and that's your uniform, spare uniform and some casual clothes. There's also some other necessities that I packed for you in case you forgot."
"Mother…" The smaller woman said.
"And if you ever find yourself in trouble, don't hesitate to call me. Or write or contact me however, you've got my information for everything. Don't even think about working, you've got your student allowance and if you ever need money just contact me and I'll see if I can send some through. I don't want you to work, you need to focus on your studies,"
"Mother." The smaller woman said again.
"It's not that I don't think you'd be able to manage. You've always been studious and a hard worker so I don't think that a job would impact it too much but the academies are a hard place and it will be a hard journey so-"
"Mother!" The smaller woman said, almost shouting. The raise in volume seemed to work as her mother stopped rambling as she did from time to time. This annoyed the girl but she appreciated the concern. There was a moment pause between the two but the girl sighed and showed a small smile. "Mother, we've been through this many times." She said taking her mother's hands in her own. "I'll be fine, Mum. I promise." Samara looked down at her daughter and sighed herself.
"I know that you'll be fine." Her Mother said. "I know that you'll be better than that, you're going to thrive and excel here and I couldn't be more proud." She moved her hand to the girl's cheek, looking upon her face. She saw the green eyes and freckles as well as the muddy blonde hair that she loved so much. "But you're still my little girl, Kayle. I'm always going to worry about you."
"I know." Kayle replied, moving her hand to her own cheek, placing it on top of her Mother's hand. The engines of the airship began to whir behind them, telling them that it was time to go. Kayle wrapped her arms around her Mother and held her close. "Goodbye, Mother. I'll miss you." Samara returned the hug with an iron grip, which made Kayle tense up.
"I'll miss you too. So much." Samara said, easing up on her hold, pulling away from the girl. "I love you." She said as she let go of her daughter. Kayle smiled and pulled up her hood as she slung her carry bag around her shoulder and hugged her Mum one last time.
"I love you too." She said, letting go. She jogged past her Mother and towards the airship, the girl's dark green cape, flapping about in her wake. She turned back and gave one last wave to Samara before disappearing into the airship, the doors shutting behind her. The airship took off and Samara watched her go, her own black cape and hood, fluttering behind her and then coming to rest once the airship was well off into the distance. As she watched it fly out of sight, a tear rolled down her cheek. She stayed there staring, until the crowds began to fill in the empty space once again.
From high up in the sky, Dusk looked down at the city below her and then to the vast landscape beyond that. She'd never seen anything beyond her village until now but to think that the world was this vast… she swore that she'd see all of it someday.
A girl with blue hair looked over at the holographic TV screen in the airship. Another dust robbery had recently been committed and now the news was reporting on it. She sighed and turned to look out of the window. Through the multiple different people between the blue haired girl and the back of the ship, a pair of eyes, belonging to a figure wearing an off-white shoulder cape, watched her.
Raiden leaned against the wall of the airship, looking out of the window and the world outside. He was surprised he could see Signal Academy. He thought of his training there and all the memories he had. Now it was time to move on to the next part of his journey, and that was at the large school that was coming into view.
Kayle was seated on a bench in the airship, reading through an old book that she'd read through many times before. But no matter how many times she read it, she would never tire of it. It was a story of grand adventure and gallant heroes, of distressed damsels and evil villains. She would not be a damsel or a villain, she would be like her mother and be a hero.
All attention on board the airship turned away from the windows, monitors, books and so forth when a blonde woman with green eyes and glasses appeared as a hologram. Her hands were placed behind her back, her stature and composure showing everyone that she was of authority. All eyes were now on the holographic projection.
"Hello and welcome to Beacon. My name is Glynda Goodwitch…"