Chapter 1: Born With No Life Into Subjugation

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

The loud alarm clock rang throughout the large dorm room, echoing off the tall ceiling. There were textbooks and notebooks stacked everywhere, ranging from a small bedside table to the corners of the room. A few shirts and sweaters were scattered on the wooden floor, making it seem almost impossible to enter the room without slipping, or tripping on something. Last but not least, a mattress was squished into a tiny closet, being held up by only a few textbooks, and clothes hangers that had been bent to secure the makeshift bed.

BEEP! BEEP! BE-

A hand lazily picked up the alarm clock, jerking the wire off the outlet it was plugged into, before throwing it across the room. A yawn emitted from the closet, as the girl emerged into the room, flinching at the brightness of the sunlight coming from the window, which just so happened to be exactly right by the closet.

"Stupid alarm clock." The girl grumbled, as she walked over to retrieve the slightly chipped clock from the other side of the room, "Just let me sleep, dammit."

She placed the clock on her desk, which was ironically the only thing in the room that seemed to be neat and tidy. The girl then proceeded to go into her personal bathroom, getting ready for another day of torture, misery, and disappoint that was unfortunately called school. Some would say that she was a pessimist, but she would disagree and say that it was just the way she viewed life.

The girl glanced at the large mirror over the sink, staring a bit longer than she had intended. Staring back at her was a girl with disheveled purple hair, a dull shade of red eyes, and blue oversized pyjamas that were wrinkled due to her sleep habits.

Ugly, she immediately thought.

Groaning, she slipped out of her pyjamas and into the bathtub. Her body immediately relaxed once her foot touched the water.

Just 2 more years. After 2 years, I'll finally be able to leave this hellhole. She thought, letting herself sink a bit deeper under the water. I can handle it. I…

Suddenly, her thoughts were interrupted by the loud speaker that could be heard from just outside the bathroom door.

"Good morning staff and students. Hope you had an excellent break. Just a reminder that the second trimester begins today, so don't be late to any of your new classes."

The announcement was slightly muffled by the door, but was still audible.

"Also, a few representatives from the main buildings will be visiting us today for an important presentation assembly. We expect you all to be on your best behaviours and treat them with respect. Don't forget to present yourselves with dignity and refinement. That is all, have a great day everyone!"

The girl scoffed, rolling her eyes. She didn't mind the morning announcements, what she did mind was the supposed representatives.

Well, actually just people in general.

See, this was no ordinary school, in fact it was far from normal. CHROME Preparatory Academy was a private school specially designed for gifted youth of London. The school focused on training young children, teenagers, and even young adults to become outstanding agents and members of CHROME, an agency of espionage and highly valuable information.

The headquarters were located inside the main buildings that were just about 10 minutes away from the school campus, but were still visible from the short distance. Beside the headquarters were a few other large buildings.

One was a greenhouse conservatory for growing all types of plants, which also included fresh fruits and vegetables, and even herbal remedies. Next to it was hospital equipped with fully trained, doctors, nurses, and even surgeons who were also a part of the society. Every employee had pledged an oath of secrecy upon joining the espionage-based community.

Another building, resembled an airport with its many rows of platforms and runways for the jets and planes to take off and land on. And finally, a separate building just a bit more further away from the rest, due to safety protocol. That specific building was the laboratory where the scientists and engineers would work together to invent dangerous, but useful gadgets and new technology to aid the field agents during their missions.

The entire CHROME society was safely hidden from the civilians of London and other trespassers. Not only was it in a secluded area, but it also had a state of the art security system, and an automatic lockdown mode that would activate upon the detection of an intruder, or by an emergency alarm which was located in almost every room of every CHROME building.

Great, just what I needed. More stuck up people in this awful school, but with a bonus! Probably a bunch of old hags who'll just nag about the future and other stuff, she groaned internally. I wonder what they'll say. Probably the stick to the old, 'weird looking girl with freaky eyes' trope. The more she thought about it the more she dreaded the unexpected arrival.

An hour later, she was refreshed and ready to start the day. She took a final look in the mirror, before grabbing her black drawstring bag and a book she recently bought, then headed out towards the school buildings. Her last thought being,

Ugh, decent.

Her long purple hair was brushed out and her bangs were secured at the side of her head by a bobby pin. Her school uniform consisted of a white knee-length dress with a collar, wrapped by a simple black tie, and a sleek blue blazer with black accents. Both sleeves had the school's emblem on the side, just below the shoulders. She wore black knee-high socks, with a single blue stripe on each, and finally a pair of short black boots.

The student dorms were connected to the school buildings by two separate outdoor corridors. The boy dormitories were on the left, while the girls were on the right. The entrance to the school had a tall arch with two statues beside it, as if they were guarding the large building. The interior of the school was much bigger. There were large staircases, rows of classroom doors, and a huge fountain with a few benches beside it. Students could be seen loitering around the balconies of the upper levels. As the girl entered the school, she couldn't help but notice a small crowd that was slowly growing by the minute.

This early? Why couldn't it have been in the afternoon, or something. Some people are trying to get to class! She thought, rolling her eyes.

"Screw this." She mumbled, before turning away, not wanting to be late for class. The next thing she knew, her head hit something hard, and she was on the cold marble floor.

She rubbed her head, groaning in pain and frustration, "What the—"

"Oh, hey Kiara." A voice said from above her. "Um… sorry, I didn't mean to bump into you. Are you okay?"

The boy had scruffy black hair, and deep blue eyes. His complexion was a light shade of brown. He wore almost the same outfit as her, but instead of a dress he wore a white dress shirt, and black pants and dress shoes, and his blazer was a bit longer, just stopping at the thigh. He looked down at Kiara with worry and hesitation, unsure of what to do.

Kiara glared up at the boy, her red eyes piercing into his blue ones. The boy offered his hand for her to grab on to, but she slapped it away harshly, before getting up herself.

"Does it look like I'm okay?!" She growled at him, dusting herself off. The boy opened his mouth to say something, but Kiara continued, "Who the hell are you, and what do you want?"

The boy tilted his head in confusion, looking at her weirdly. "Uh… it's me, Nick. Don't you…remember me?"

Kiara stared at him for the longest moment, creating an awkward silence between them. Nick shuffled uncomfortably under her gaze. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, Kiara finally spoke.

"Should I?" Her monotone voice sent shivers down his spine with only a simple reply. The boy was about to reply back, but didn't get a chance to as Kiara started walking away from him.

"Wait!" The awkward boy called out to her. She turned around and raised an eyebrow, the frown unwavering from her face. "Well, we're both in our second year of CPA X. Have you already decided what you wanted to do?"

Unlike the usual education system, CHROME Preparatory Academy required the students to take four extra years after Year 12. They called it, CPA X, which Kiara personally thought was a stupid name, and should've been called 'university years', or at least something less confusing.

"Yes." She replied simply.

Nick waited for her to elaborate, but when she didn't he decided to speak again, "And, that would be?"

"None of your business." Kiara replied, again with a harsh tone.

She started to walk away, but Nick was persistent. He gently grabbed her shoulder in an attempt to get her attention, "Hey, wait a second—"

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" Kiara suddenly yelled, earning the attention of a few students from the growing crowd. Nick immediately let go of her shoulder, startled at her outburst.

"I'm sorry! Kiara, just calm—"

"NO!" She said again, her voice firm and just loud enough to intimidate him, "What the hell is your problem?! Just leave me alone!"

"I didn't mean to scare you, I just—"

"GO AWAY!" Kiara growled at him. Nick could've sworn he saw her eyes darken a bit. Despite his nervousness around the strange girl, he managed to stand his ground.

"What's wrong with you?! Why are you so cold to everyone?! Honestly, you're the rudest person I've ever met in my entire life!" Nick yelled back at her with rage.

Kiara was about to scream at him again, when a new voice interrupted their argument.

"I told you, Nick." A girl with tan skin and brown curly hair said, with her arms crossed and a glare aimed directly at Kiara. A few other people stood behind her looking at her with disgust. The girl continued to speak to Nick, her eyes not leaving Kiara's.

"It's a lost cause. People like her aren't even worth talking to. You shouldn't waste your time on her."

Kiara rolled her eyes, getting even more frustrated with the useless conversation that she was—unfortunately— a part of.

"She's clearly got some serious issues." The girl sneered. She walked over to Nick, letting his arms wrap around her waist protectively, before she continued her verbal assault, "You don't have to be so rude all the time. Like, who do you think you are?"

Kiara sighed, deciding that enough was enough. She tried to walk away, only to be blocked by the girl's minions that she called "friends". Clenching her teeth, Kiara turned to face her.

"What do you want, Natalie?" Kiara glared at her. She hated Natalie with a burning passion. If looks could kill, she'd already be ten feet under the ground.

"Answer my question." Natalie said simply, "You must think that you're so special, thinking that you can just treat everyone any way you want. Just because you don't talk to anyone doesn't mean you own the freakin' school. So stop acting like you're all that."

I really want to punch this pretentious, little witch in the face... with a baseball bat. Kiara thought darkly. God, I hate her so much.

"Because the truth is," Natalie spoke with a wicked smile on her face, "nobody here likes or even cares about you. So, get over yourself."

Kiara growled at her, only making her friends laugh obnoxiously, "Aww, shorty's getting short-tempered."

Kiara's left eye twitched at the comment. Not only was she the most feared and ridiculed student in the school, she was also one of the shortest people in her year being only 4'11.

Kiara felt the anger bubble up inside her. She knew that if she didn't calm down, she'd do something she'd regret later.

Calm down, deep breaths. Just relax… She thought, closing her eyes.

"How cute, little Kiki is getting angry." Natalie and her friends continued to laugh as they tormented her, calling her all sorts of names. All the while, Nick stayed silent, not uttering a single word.

All of a sudden, Kiara started laughing, causing everyone else to stop and stare at her in shock. It didn't sound like a happy laugh though. It didn't sound innocent and carefree. If anyone was being honest, Kiara's laugh sounded creepy. After her laughter had died down, she smirked at Natalie.

"You're such an idiot."

"Wha-?! How dare you!" Natalie almost screeched,

"You're only contradicting yourself." Kiara said, her face turning blank and her voice becoming monotone once again. "You claim that no one cares about my presence here, and yet you and your posse continue to torment me. The students at this academy don't ignore me. They talk about me behind my back. They insult me. So, while your statement is half true, I'm going to have to disagree with you."

Kiara slowly walked up to Natalie until they were face to face. Despite Kiara being inches shorter than her, her very being intimidated the latter. Natalie would never admit it to anyone though.

"Nobody likes me, but I still exist." Kiara slowly smiled at her, "They can't ignore me. They can't pretend like I'm not there. They can't feel apathetic about me, do you want to know why?"

Natalie opened her mouth, wanting to challenge her, but no words came out. None of her friends seemed to respond either, they only stared at her as the girl spoke quietly. Even Nick seemed to tense up at the uncomfortable tension that was growing.

"Because they fear me. They hate me. They wish I was never born." Kiara's voice was getting quieter by the second, "And, if you and your friends ever come near me again, I'll show you the exact reason why."

The second Kiara had finished talking, Natalie's friends had run away screaming profanities and petty insults at the former. Meanwhile, Natalie was trying to pull herself together, not wanting to look vulnerable and defeated. But, it was no use, she had nothing else to say but a simple sentence,

"You're a freak."

Nick helped support his girlfriend as she was starting to feel lightheaded and nauseous. The two of them walked past Kiara who was staring straight ahead, not bothering to spare them a glance. He didn't know what to say. This was not the Kiara that he remembered, and yet… she still had that same look in her eyes.

Before he could take another step, Kiara's spine-chilling voice stopped him, "Oh, and Nick, was it?"

"Y-yes?" He stuttered nervously,

"Don't ever touch me again."

The nervous boy gulped, before nodding his head and mumbled a quiet, 'okay'.

After Kiara was sure that everyone of Natalie's annoying minions were gone, she let out a sigh of relief.

"Finally, I thought they'd never leave," she mumbled to herself, then laughed a bit. "What a bunch of gullible idiots. What are they so afraid of, anyway?"

Noticing that there was a still fifteen minutes before classes started, Kiara made her way over to one of the benches near the fountain. She set her bag down, taking out her book and a coin.

There were only a few students near the fountain, considering that the rest were crowding the entrance awaiting the representatives. Kiara held the coin tightly, looking at the fountain in concentration.

Kiara didn't believe in wishes, or prayers, or anything like that. But, it was times like these where she felt so desperate enough to at least try.

I know what I did was wrong. And, I know it's happened before. It won't be long until Natalie and her minions come back again. It's like a never-ending cycle. I just don't know how to react. I don't want this. I never wanted this. Why can't I do anything right?!

The purple-haired girl was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't notice the crowd suddenly got rowdier, and louder. Even the remaining students who were at the fountain got curious, and joined the massive crowd of students.

I wish, I pray, I beg, I hope, and I dream that someone will see me for who I really am. I want someone who I can look in the eye, and trust no matter what. I want someone to save me from myself.

The crowd seemed to separate, giving the representatives space and letting them through. Kiara still paid no mind to the crowd that seemed to follow the celebrity-like agents, who unfortunately seemed to be headed her way.

I want to break free.

"Oh, calm down Shiftwell, I was only teasing you!"

I want to… to feel love…

"Yeah? Tease this, Davis!"

"Wait, Holley! Don't!"

But, how can I when I don't even—

Kiara's thoughts were interrupted as felt herself being roughly shoved from behind. The coin in her hand had splashed into the fountain, "officially" completing her wish. Unfortunately, that wasn't the only thing that landed into the fountain. The cold water temporarily blinded her as she tried to get up. Her clothes were soaking wet, and she was shivering uncontrollably.

"Siddeley!" An unfamiliar male voice could be heard.

Kiara's head pounded. Two falls in one day was enough for her to get a serious concussion, and quite possibly hypothermia. And it wasn't even 9 o'clock yet. She groaned internally, feeling like her head was going to explode.

"What?! It's not my fault, she pushed me!" Another male voice protested.

Then, she felt it again. The anger that had previously poisoned her mind was there again. Kiara clenched her fists tightly, letting her wet hair fall in front of her face, hiding her expression.

"Will you two stop bickering for ten bloody seconds?!"

That's when she finally snapped.

"Are you alright, Miss?" The blurry figure seemingly offered his hand to her, but at this point she wasn't even listening anymore, not that she'd care anyway, "I'm terribly sorry, my colleagues—"

The unknown man was abruptly cut off. The room echoed with gasps coming from every mouth that had just witnessed the assault.

Kiara retracted her fist slowly, before the realization dawned on her. She just punched one of the CHROME representatives in front of almost everyone in her year.

Crap. She thought miserably, before glancing at the giant grandfather clock on one of the staircases. Now, I'm gonna be late for class.

A/N: I've always pronounced Tenebris as [TEN-ah-BREE], and never noticed until now. Special thanks to for reminding me of my love for writing stories. I really do appreciate it.