Gladiatorial Fanfiction University (GFU) Chapter 1
DISCLAIMER- I own just the plot and dialogue of GFU. I own nothing else.
See Author's Note at the End of the Chapter
In the world of fanfiction, there is fandom that belongs to Gladiator. It is not terribly large but it does deserve some recognition. It as some good fanfiction and then it has some not. Our story begins with a normal girl who happened to write horrible fanfiction. And to those who write bad fanfiction, will come the consequences in the form of GFU…
It was dark in the room of Abigail Whiten but she did not notice. The teenager was busily typing on her computer; it was her passion to write fanfiction. Currently she was writing her great epic story, Lust in Rome. Her favorite character, the absolute hunk, Maximus was currently ditching his wife, whoever she was, for his true love. His true love, her stunningly beautiful character Anna Juliana, was in the process of professing her love for him and vice versa. She sighed. What a great story.
"Oh, maximuus. I luv you my hunk!" Anna gushed. Her dress was black silk and her beautiful green eyes and red hair was curling perfectly on her shoulders.
Maximius kissed her and…
Suddenly the computer screen flickered off. Abby blinked and looked at the dark computer screen. She then realized a horrifying thought. She had forgotten to save her masterpiece! She fell to the ground and sobbed, her shoulders shaking.
"Oh, stuff it!" said an irate voice. Abby looked up, confused. Where had that voice come from? The next thing she noticed was that the computer was back on. Only this time the screen was different. The heading on the page proclaimed: The Gladiatorial Fanfiction University. And there was a letter attached.
To Miss Abigail White:
You will be pleased to know that you have just been accepted to the Gladiatorial Fanfiction University (GFU). Your fanfics are horrible and have been deleted from any website that they appear on. Please complete the application below and listen to the advisor that contacts you. The term begins on the Ides of March.
Signed
Anam Cliste
Your Extremely Irate Course Coordinator
"Now that this has gotten your attention, fanwriter," said the voice. Abby's eyes widened to the size of golf balls. The voice was coming from her computer. "We would like to compel you to sign up for classes at GFU. Your horrible, plot and character mangling, Mini producing and Mary Sues fanfiction have gotten you into this."
"But who are you?" asked Abby, who still could believe her computer was talking to her and beginning to wonder if she was sick in the head.
The voice sighed, producing a wave of static on the cheap speakers. "I am Panthar, the security detail for Anam Cliste, your course coordinator at GFU. Miss Cliste will basically be in charge of your life for the next year that you are at GFU."
"But what if I don't want to go to this dumb university. I can write already, all my reviewers say so!" Abby said.
The voice paused, as if considering the options. "That's currently not a choice for you, fanwriter. Your reviewers are idiotic. Now complete the form." In response to what the voice said, the screen started to blink rapidly. It only stopped when Abby started to type the information wanted.
"This is so weird. The Emperors of Rome? And Canon and You: Use It! What kind of university is this? But the class that really made Abby blink was Arena: The Life of a Gladiator taught by Juba and… Maximus! That was enough to make her fingers type faster than they ever had.
"I am really enjoying this hallucination." Abby remarked to the computer but it remained silent. Yep, a hallucination. She filled out the rest of the form, which was extremely odd. It was like a college application but very different.
Name: Abigail Whiten
Preferred Name: Abby
Knowledge of the Gladiator Canon; Minimal, Somewhat, Knowledgeable, or Know-It- All: Somewhat
Major Lust Object: Maximus!
Minor Lust Object (If any.): Juba
As Abby was writing down all this somewhat pointless information, she missed some very important parts of the application. They were the often-overlooked disclaimers. I released GFU from any liability from any injury brought about by my stupidity. And, I am responsible for my own behavior and shall not blame my teachers/lust objects.
There were other parts such as a suggested packing list and term schedules. The term schedule said Abby had six classes per semester and each semester they rotated. Abby was getting extremely confused and tired; by the time she sent the form, she was half-asleep. She stumbled around packing clothes and a spare blanket, wondering why she was doing so anyway.
The bed was beckoning to her. Abby dropped the bag she had packed and stumbled into bed. She was tired but it was 11:55. Had she noticed the Gladiator calendar on the wall, she would have known it was the 14th of March. The clock by her bedside ticked closer and closer to 12:00 and the Ides of March.
The clock struck midnight and inside Abby's room a shimmering portal opened. Three small figures and a larger one came into the room from the portal. The three small figures toting spears and nets grabbed the duffel bag that had been packed earlier.
"Grab her an d toss her in the wagon. Make sure you lock up the computer. " Hissed the larger shape. A net was secured around Abby and they dragged her off to the waiting transportation. Meanwhile, Panthar, was securing the computer; all of Abby's fanfiction was wiped from her computer and any website it was on. Panthar frowned.
"This is awful, worse than that other girl Melissa," he mused. He quickly shut the computer down, lest it produce more evil. Then he checked quickly for anything they had dropped and they exited via the portal. The room was left exactly as it was found.
Meanwhile at back at GFU, preparations were being made. Class had been set up and characters were preparing for the horror awaiting them, students. The student dorms were being completed on an overtime schedule. The campus almost looked normal from the window of the course coordinator's office. Almost. If you permitted Minis to due construction work it would turn out… interesting.
Miss Ana sighed and got back to the task at hand. These tasks would be placating the fears of Canon students and assigning their security, last minute class lectures, and trying to sort out the mess that was GFU. Panthar and several very willing minis had volunteered to collect the students and bring them to GFU. The other minis were finishing their own preparations for security. Miss Ana didn't want to ask.
"Miss Ana, I simply cannot have this Mini as my security," said Commodus, complaining about his one of his many minis, Commo. "He insists on wearing red all the time and is like a constant shadow!"
Miss Ana sighed. "Commodus, he is supposed to follow you simply because otherwise you will have fangirls all over you. He is very devoted and will not take any one else for his security detail. Just give him and Cummudus a week and they will be your best friends.
"But…" Commodus started to complain about something else when Maximus came in looking tired.
"Miss Ana, the student dorms are ready and the Coliseum as just been completed. They are on time and budget." Miss Ana looked relieved.
"Good. Have the dorms been furnished already?" Maximus shook his head. "Ah, well. It shouldn't take the Minis that long to complete them. Give my regards to Selene."
Maximus nodded and headed out the door. He had become a man of few words since his ordeal with the fandom. But, then again, who could blame him?
Miss Ana also had to get the class schedules handwritten to give to the students. The computer she had almost brought with her could not be hooked up onsite so the majority of handouts, schedules, and other miscellaneous files had to be done by hand. Luckily, she was used to strenuous writer's cramp.
Meanwhile, Lucilla and Marcus Auerlius were filing the students' files complete with all of their offending fanfiction. It was an interesting crowd. Slash, romance, and Minis abounded. Nearby, Selene was sorting students by lusters; the Commodus lusters and the Maximus lusters had to be separated and the Juba and Hagen lusters were paired together. Minis also had to be assigned to the different groups. The rest of the paperwork had to be done in less than twelve hours.
The GFU slowly but surely pulled itself together. The construction work was completed right before the Minis would have had to be paid their overtime pay, amphorae of wine. The characters were sleeping uneasily in the staff section, guarded by minis and slightly uncanonical repellent spells. Miss Ana herself turned in for the night. They were ready but were the students?
A/ N- This is the current revised edition. I am working on the other chapters and they will be much, much better than the original chapters. All the original people enrolled will still be enrolled, so do not worry. Bear with me as I revamped and thank you for the constructive reviews and thoughts from all my reviews. Keep it coming!