Jake

Four Years Ago:

"Runt!" Cecil yelled as he pushed a six-year-old Jake down.

The rest of the class laughed like it was the most hilarious thing in the world. Jake groaned and got up slowly. This is was why he hated coming to school. He wasn't that short. Granted he was eleven years old and barely hitting two feet, but he was sure he would grow. The fact that the kids in his class were starting to manifest quirks was not helping. Rumors were saying Cecil had some minor form of telekinesis.

Jake, unfortunately, did not have his quirk yet.

"You're pathetic." Cecil laughed.

Jake growled. "Fuck you, Cecil!"

Everyone in his class gasped. Being only eleven, hearing someone curse was probably one of the badass things they could witness. Everyone looked from Cecil to Jake, eager to see what would happen next. Cecil growled and took another step forward.

"You dead Jake." He hissed.

Jake stood up and howled. He may have been short but he sure as hell was going to take this kid out. His eyes wandered to the ground. An apple. It was lunchtime; it must have fallen from a kid's lunch. Staring at that apple gave Jake the strangest satisfaction ever. Like he hadn't eaten in days, yet he ate just an hour ago.

Reacting on instinct he plucked the apple from the ground and unhinged his jaw. Swallowing the entire thing in one bite. The rest of his class gagged in disgust. The action, however, felt completely natural to Jake. His whole body surged like he just drank a gallon of coffee. He looked down and was surprised to see his muscles were glowing. Hold up, when did he have muscles?

He took another look at himself and gasped as he began to grow. His frame was soon reaching six feet and his muscles ripped his tiny shirt open.

"What the hell are you doing?" Cecil gulped.

Jake now towered over the boy, which Jake loved. He grinned.

"Guess I found out what my quirk is." Jake grinned.

His throat felt strangely warm. Like he had to cough. He opened wide and coughed, a large blast of orange light slamming into Cecil, throwing him several feet back.

Finally, their teacher caught the scene of the brawl and ran over.

"What is going on here?" She hissed.

Now:

Jake was currently five feet. Something that made him greatly frustrated. His body looked so frail and wimpy. Like a twig. Like someone who was weak. He always made sure to eat several meals throughout the night, so not even Matt saw him while he wasn't powered up. However, Matt was sulking a night and was doing a full-on workout in three in the morning.

Jake looked at the food on his dresser. He needed to eat a lot before he went to the common room. He couldn't let anyone see him look so weak. So useless.

While he was deep in thought, the door opened. Jake didn't have enough time to cover himself when Maryanne walked in. She stopped as soon as she saw him. Her face was redder than a tomato.

"Oh my god, I'm sorry I thought this was-"

"Get the hell out!" Jake yelled.

She dashed out of the room with amazing speed, Jake close behind her. He growled and slammed the door. Crap. Did she see him?


Lex

"Why are we up this early in the morning?" Hunter complained.

Lex, Maryanne, Hunter, Jarret, and Aurelie sat in Ms. Morningstar's office. The tension in the room was so thick Lex could have cut it with a knife.

"So Lex, I'm guessing you don't stay in room 32?" Maryanne gulped.

Lex raised an eyebrow. "Uh no. Kaleb and I stay in room 23. Why do you ask?"

"I went looking for you this morning because I heard Ms. Mornginstar wanted to see you too. Let's just say it didn't go well." Maryanne sighed.

Lex turned to Aurelie and noticed she was unusually quiet. Usually, the girl was full of energy and had a joke to crack to lighten the mood. Or at least one of her personalities did.

"Are we in trouble?" Jarret whimpered.

"It's obvious, why we're here. We're at the top of the class." Aurelie said.

Hunter burst out into laughter. "I have awful grades."

"I mean hero wise. Remember the arena? Lex was one, Maryanne was two, I was three, you were four, and Jarret was five." Aurelie said.

Maryanne blushed. "That's surprising. There are so many kids in our class with stronger quirks than me."

"Indeed, Maryanne." Ms. Morningstar said.

The five teens turned to see their headmistress walking into the room. The five teens quickly rose, to greet their teacher.

"Good morning Ms. Morningstar." They all said.

"Kids, you don't need to be so formal. Sit down please." She said.

They all followed her command and took a seat. Lex was intrigued by Ms. Morningstar. She seemed like a woman with layers. One minute she was a warm teacher, the next she was cold and militant.

"Do you know why I called you into today? Because the five of you show promise." She said.

"I do?" Lex said as he raised an eyebrow.

"Some of your quirks are so mundane, but the five of you used them with skill and precision to take on your classmates." She said with a sense of amusement.

"Actually, there wasn't really a strategy with mine. I kind of just exploded into a tidal wave." Maryanne admitted.

"Nonetheless I was hoping to register you five for a more…advanced class." She said delicately.

"Lady, I'm failing like half of my classes right now. How am I going to do a class that's advanced?" Hunter asked.

"This new class will be handpicked students, that I believe are on the fastest track to becoming heroes. It will be overseen by me personally. And while I can't' say much, I will tell you that it's a rigorous program." She smiled.

A new program? Lex was felt a boost in his self-confidence, she thought he deserved to be the head of the class. Even if he hated the attention and the responsibility, someone believing in him like that felt nice. Nonetheless the way she talked about the program made him nervous? What exactly was Ms. Morningstar planning?

"Can I have some time to think it over." Aurelie said quietly.

"Me too." Lex said.

"I would like some time as well." Jarret said.

"Sure, but don't take too long kiddies." She said darkly.

She waved her hand. "You all are dismissed."


Hunter

"Is it just me or is she scary as hell?" Maryanne said.

The five teens were walking to the common room, still shaken up by their interaction with the headmistress.

"That was horrifying." Jarret admitted.

Hunter rolled his eyes. "Her quirk makes her a GPS, not Satan. Why is everyone so scared of her?"

Mrs. Zambiea and Mr. Ross acted like Ms. Morningstar was one of the strongest heroes in America. After hearing of heroes like All Might and Best Jeanist from his cousins in Japan, a woman with the ability to track people didn't seem so menacing.

"It's her aura. It screams, 'I will stab you in a heart and not even flinch'." Maryanne said.

Most of their class was already in the common room, waiting until the first bell rung. They all had the same first period, Hero Ethics 101, taught by Mrs. Zambiea. After that they usually split off into their core classes. As soon as she saw the five, Victoria stood up immediately.

She was wearing a new skirt, Hunter noted. Most girls wore the standard uniform of a black or skirt, but Victoria's was a lovely shade of violet, probably made of fine material.

"Why did Ms. Morningstar want to see you?" Victoria demanded.

Hunter rolled his eyes. He knew Victoria was going to flip out, going into her perfectionist warrior state of mind. Hunter couldn't lie though, he found her ten times more attractive when she was yelling at him.

"It was stupid stuff." Maryanne blushed.

She looked down at her feet in either embarrassment or fear. She shared a room with Victoria, so Hunter figured it was normal for her to fear the girl. Or maybe it was a different look entirely. Maybe she was trying to spare Victoria's feelings.

"It was head of the class stuff." Jarret admitted.

Hunter and Maryanne's eyes widened. They shot Jarret a dirty look. He shrugged his shoulders like he didn't understand what happened. Like he didn't just sign their death warrants.

"Oh." Victoria said simply.

"Really Victoria, it was nothing important." Hunter said.

"She was proably congratulating you five on being so much better than me." Victoria said bitterly. "I mean the rest of the class."

Cleo frowned. "I'm number six, why didn't she want to speak to me?"

"I'm sorry but whoever gave a fuck about any number below five?" Sarah smirked.

The girl sat perched on one of the couches. Hunter raised an eyebrow when he noticed that she wasn't with Matt. Those two were inseparable these past couple weeks.

"You're lower than me." Cleo hissed.

"Cleo close your legs, your fish smelling vagina is stinking up the common room." Sarah laughed.

Hunter ignored the girls bickering and turned to Victoria.

"It was stupid really; you didn't miss much. Besides everyone in class knows you're one of the strongest kids here." He reassured.

Victoria looked between the five teenagers. "I should be up there." She said solemnly.

"I don't blame any of you. I blame Fouzia." Victoria hissed.

Fouzia heard her name and rolled her eyes. "Are we still on this first week drama? Get over it, no one else is even talking about the matches anymore."

"She's right, I lost, but you don't see me complaining every day." Faith said.

Jake rolled his eyes. "You lost to Hunter; he at least has a semi useful quirk. I lost to fucking Maryanne, whose quirk basically makes her a puddle."

"Hey cut it out Jake." Alexander frowned.

Victoria walked over to Fouzia. "You challenged me and used knowledge of my quirk to your advantage."

"Gee Victoria, you mean use strategy? The same thing you do?" Fouzia said.

Victoria growled. "Don't compare yourself to me. You are NOTHING!" She hissed.

Everyone looked between the two girls nervously. Both of those girls had devasting quirks, one wrong word and this whole building could collapse.

"I have never been so terrified in my life." Maryanne said quietly.

Fouzia looked at Victoria, her eyes flaring with anger. "Get out of my face Crown."

"What about a rematch? Do you think you'll get lucky again?" Victoria asked.

The lights above the teens began to flicker, causing Hunter to gulp. He wiped a droplet of sweat from his eyebrow. He frowned, why was it so hot in here? Fouzia, he realized. She was raising the temperature.

"I said GET OUT OF MY FACE!" Fouzia yelled.

A wall of flames shot from her arms, flying towards Victoria. With remarkable speed, Victoria held up her hands and pulled the shadows together to form a shield. She didn't seem fazed by the temperature hitting her shield.

"Guys cut it out!" Alexander yelled.

Fouzia's eyes widened. "I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to do that."

Victoria growled. "Really? Cause I meant to do this."

With her free hand Victoria arched fingers towards Fouzia, razor sharp tendrils of shadows flying towards Fouzia.

"Oh my god." Cleo gasped.

Hunter prepared to step in when a large blob of water slammed into Fouzia, pushing her out of the way of the shadows. That blob soon began to change shape and solidify into Maryanne. Hunter gasped; he didn't even seem the girl transform into her water form.

Victoria's eyes widened. Hunter had never seen that look in her face before. Was that look, a look of betrayal?

"You're on her side!" Victoria yelled.

"There aren't any sides!" Maryanne yelled.

Hunter stepped in between the girls. "Victoria calm down."

"I am calm!" Victoria snarled.

She pushed past Hunter and held up her fist. Shadows swirled around her knuckles until they shaped themselves into spiked brass knuckles.

"Since you don't believe that I belong at the top of the class, I'll prove it." She said.

She charged at Fouzia and Maryanne, however a large fist grabbed her shirt collar and yanked her off the ground. Hunter looked up to see a laughing Jake holding her high above his head.

"I love girl drama as much as the next guy, but I'm not going to let you hurt Maryanne and Fouzia. Because that honor should belong to me." He smirked.

"Fuck off Jake." Fouzia hissed.

Jake's throat glowed bright orange. "See it's that mouth of yours that's going to get you in trouble Fouzia."

"Jake stop it!" Maryanne yelled. "Or maybe I should tell everyone what I saw this morning?"

Hunter raised an eyebrow. He felt like was several chapters behind in a mystery book. Jake's eyes widened and he snarled.

"Don't you dare Maryanne!"

"What in the world is going on here?" Mr. Ross asked.

The sixteen teens turned to see their science teacher glaring at them.

"Well sir, you just interrupted what would have been an amazing fight." Sarah smirked.

"It wasn't really a fight." Alexander blushed.

Victoria looked down at her feet and sighed. "It's true we were fighting. Only because Fouzia-"

"None of this is my fault!" Fouzia yelled.

"Fouzia can you shut up?" Jake hissed.

"Jake I will deep fry your testicles!" Fouzia threatened.

Hunter rolled his eyes. "Why am I here?"

Mr. Ross stepped forward and pointed to Victoria, Fouzia, Maryanne, Hunter, and Jake.

"So you five were involved in the fight?" He asked.

"Fight's such an ugly word, why don't we call it a disagreement?" Hunter reasoned.

Mr. Ross sighed. "You know that means I have to send you five to detention?"

Hunter laughed. Was that it? In middle school he made detention his bitch. He doubted Morning Star had something he couldn't handle.

"Bring it." He grinned.

Victoria and Alexander however did not seem amused. "Please sir, this was their first offense."

"All the drama that's caused throughout this year always seems to lead back to you sixteen." He said.

"Why thank you." Sarah said.

"That's not a compliment. How you all argue doesn't help your case either. If you guys won't get along on your own, I'll force you too. So you five are coming with me to detention." He said.

"Please sir." Victoria pleaded.

He ignored their pleas. "You five with me NOW." He ordered.


Jake

"Why do you hate me so much?" Maryanne frowned.

The five teens were walking behind Mr. Ross. They all were in a bad mood after getting pulled away from their class.

"I don't hate you." Jake said.

Maryanne crossed her arms. "Then why do you bully me?"

"Please, I don't bully you." Jake said.

"You bully everyone, you just constantly insult everyone." Maryanne said.

He frowned. She made it seem like he was mean or something. Like he was a bad person. Jake knew that wasn't true. He was a good person. It wasn't his fault some people got offended easily.

"Whatever Maryanne." He sighed.

The five teens followed their teacher to the edge of campus. They stopped when they reached a giant red door.

"Please sir, give us another chance." Victoria pleaded.

Why was she so scared? It was just detention. So what they were sitting in a boring room for a couple of hours? Worst things could happen. Their teacher pulled out a key from his coat and sighed.

"I'm sorry but you five need to learn." He stuck the key in and twisted it.

He muttered a few words and opened the door. Jake raised an eyebrow. Just as he expected, it was a normal classroom. Nothing horrifying about it. His classmates were just pussies.

"In you go." He said.

Fouzia went in first. Cautiously stepping into the room. Maryanne and Hunter went after her. Jake smirked and walked in. He was thrilled he got to miss his classes for the day. Victoria stepped in after him and sighed.

"Good luck." He said simply.

With that he closed the door. As soon as the door clicked everything went black.


Sarah

"Are you okay?" Lex asked.

Sarah rolled her eyes. The boy was so…considerate. It was honestly exhausting.

"Can I help you Dayton?" She asked.

The duo currently sat in English class; Sarah however was too focused on her shade of lipstick too care about the Lord of the Flies.

"You've been weird lately." He said.

"I'm always weird, there is no one else like me." Sarah said.

Lex laughed. "It's just…you don't seem very happy."

Sarah frowned. How could he say that? She was plenty happy.

"Are things good with Matt?" Lex asked.

Sarah gulped. She hadn't talked to the boy since that day in his room. She avoided him to the best of her ability. Out of sight, out of mind. It was hard. She felt like she needed to talk to him. He was the only person to show that they cared for her. The only person who could put up with her. The only person who would never leave her. His temper was just a mild setback in their relationship. However, she couldn't ignore the fear she had of him.

Every time he moved his hand, she flinched. Every time he got angry she quivered. Even his laughs startled her. Like it wasn't sincere. Like he was just waiting for her to mess up, so he can unleash all his anger. Her hands went to her neck. She tried overlooking the choking, however a couple weeks ago he squeezed too hard and she almost passed out. Her hands then went to the back of head. It still throbbed from when he pushed her into the wall.

"Things are great with Matt. He's great and the sex is even better." Sarah said.

Lex sighed. "If you say so."

"I do say so, Dayton. Don't you have a girlfriend to bother?" Sarah asked.

"I'm single." Lex said.

"Well if you finally shacked it up with Faith, you wouldn't be." Sarah said.

Lex laughed. "Faith and I are friends; she looks at me like her brother."

"That's the biggest load of bullshit I have ever head in my life." Sarah laughed.

Sarah recognized the look in Faith's eyes whenever Lex walked into the room. It was full of hope and adoration. Of passion. It was a look she believed she used to give to Matt.

She was so wrapped in her thoughts she didn't even notice the bell ring. She sighed and grabbed her bags, walking to her room. She smiled. Fouzia was gone all day and she had thirty minutes till her next class. She could probably get an excellent catnap.

She opened the door and yelped when she saw Matt sitting on her bed.

"Hey, Sarah." He blushed.

"How did you get in here?" Sarah gulped.

Matt raised an eyebrow. "You gave me a key."

Suddenly Sarah remembered the incident. It was after one of the first times they had sex. The period where their relationship was fresh and vibrant, and she believed Matt would never hurt her. Back then she was only worried about emotional pain.

"What's wrong Matt?" Sarah asked.

Matt sighed. "I miss you."

"You saw me yesterday Matt." She said.

She walked over to her closet and reached in and pulled out her hero costume. Maybe if she kept it close to her, he would see her as a potential hero. Not as something to push around.

"But I miss you like crazy. Not being able to talk to you or hold you is torture. I messed up Sarah and I know it." He said.

Sarah looked down at her feet. "You didn't mess up." She muttered.

She didn't want to make him upset. Besides she was the one that instigated the last fight. If only she kept her big mouth shut.

"I should never have pushed you. I don't want to hurt you ever again. I made a mistake, but I want you to know that I will never hurt you again." Matt said.

Sarah sighed. She bit her lip and finally met her boyfriend's eyes. "We don't have to be together. Maybe we aren't meant to be together and that's okay. Maybe another girl will be better suited for you."

Matt stood up and walked over to her. He delicately grabbed her and pulled her close to his chest. Even though she knew it was supposed to be non-threating, the gesture made her body want to thrash in fear.

"I don't want anyone else. You're the only person in the whole world who understands me." Matt smiled weakly.

Pain was in his eyes, however, Sarah could tell it didn't compare to hers.

"I need you." He said.

That was it. Those words. The words she had been waiting her whole life for someone to say. That she was enough. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a necklace. It was a golden chain, with a scarlet-colored heart attached. Around the edges of the heart were pearls. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

"Oh my god." She gasped.

He smiled. "I figured because of your hero costume scarlet was your favorite color, and then I chose the pearl outline because it's your birthstone."

She blushed. "You know my birthday?"

"Of course. I haven't been a good boyfriend Sarah, but I'm want to do everything in my power to prove how much you mean to me." He said.

She bit her lip. He was sorry. That was all that mattered, the past was in the past.

"I forgive you." She said.

Saying those words made it feel like a weight was being lifted off of her shoulders. He pulled her in for a hug. His strong arms wrapping around her, making her feel safe. And trapped.


Aurelie

Aurelie looked at her reflection in the mirror. Who was she? That question had been running through her mind all day. The memory of Diego's beaten body was burned into her memory. Did she do that? No, it was Alice. But who was Alice? Why was she showing up now? And why was she so brutal?

Aurelie tried turning to her sisters for help, but all of the girls were silent. Which was incredibly unusual.

"You okay?" Cleo asked.

Aurelie turned to Cleo watching her and forced a smile. "Of course."

"Have you heard what happened to Diego?" Cleo asked.

Aurelie gulped. "No."

"Well, apparently he was jumped this morning. The nurse said that if he had been brought even a second later he would be dead." Cleo said solemnly.

She blushed. "Not that he deserves our sympathy after what he did to you. That was really messed up."

"Don't worry about it," Aurelie said.

She struggled to get the sentence out. "I'm over it." She whimpered.

She looked back at her reflection in the mirror. Who was she?


Fouzia

Fouzia never realized how rough sand was until she had a nap on it.

"Wake up Fouzia! If I'm suffering so are the rest of us!" Jake yelled.

Fouzia groaned and sat up to see the four other teens watching her. She gasped when she looked at her surroundings. They were on a beach. How did they get from a classroom to a beach?

"Did I die?" Fouzia said.

"No, we're in detention." Victoria scowled.

Hunter laughed. "What detention is held on a beach?"

Victoria crossed her arms. "My mother told me about this. The detention room is really a portal that can take you anywhere in the world. It was created by some of the smartest heroes in the world. Morning Star is considered a safe house, so if danger ever arises it provides a way to get in to the school."

"That's ironic because Morning Star is the most unsafe place ever." Maryanne sighed.

Fouzia frowned. This hot temperature wasn't helping her quirk. She had limits, eventually, her body would burn too hot and she would need a cool-down period. The hot temperature of the beach was only making things worse.

"So how do we get out of here?" She asked.

"We get out when they want to let us out," Victoria said.

"So, when the hell will that be?" Jake asked.

Just as he said that a low rumble was heard. Almost like a growl. The five turned to look at the jungle on the side of the beach.

"What the hell?" Hunter asked.

Maryanne gulped. "Oh my god. What else is on this beach with us?"

Victoria held up her hand and summoned her katana. Jake's throat glowed with a menacing orange light. Hunter held up his hands, which flattened and sharpened. Maryanne's arms became transparent and soon turned into water.

Fouzia smirked and held up her hands. Flames circling around her arms.

"Well guys, look's like we're going to have some fun today," Fouzia said.