Continuing my mass updating. Same disclaimers apply.
After a while, the humming below the Shroud stopped. The Fantabulous Four didn't feel any change, not even a bump to tell them they'd landed. When the right wall of the room they were in opened, they nervously glanced at each other, before watching the door slowly go down.
Once the door touched the ground, their belts unfastened. A group of burly men who looked like the H.I.V.E. guards in the book led them out, and told them to go up the large staircase ending with a huge metal door. The four girls followed silently, surveying the dock.
It was exactly as the book had described: filled with Shrouds and other pieces of equipment, kept bustling with all the people roaming around, fixing the aircrafts and such. They caught glimpses of other students being led up the staircase. It looked as though they weren't the last to get there.
As they approached the large doors, Andy abruptly turned to all the guards and technicians in the dock, blew a kiss, and bowed. The doors opened, and they went in before seeing the reactions on her audience's faces.
Andy's friends gawked for a few seconds, before breaking out into laughter. When everyone stared at them, they hastily stopped.
"What the heck was that about?" Nick whispered, still giggling. Andy shrugged casually.
"To ease the tension, I guess." She replied, sounding a bit grim. "I mean, look at this place."
She was right; the tension in the air was so thick a power saw wouldn't cut through it. All the other kids in the room were barely moving. Whispers and shuffling were nearly nonexistent. Barely anyone was breathing properly.
"Bet'cha I can tell who's who in this crowd." Andy muttered, looking around. The others nodded, and listened.
"Kids who're frozen?" she started. "Like us, except they have no idea about H.I.V.E. Brilliant kids with normal families living normal lives until they came here. Sponsored," she added. "By G.L.O.V.E. workers who saw how good they were."
"The people bunched together, they have a vague idea of what's happening." Andy said. "Maybe they had suspicions about their family members being part of something big, but they didn't really know about it until now. Plus, they know each other, from the way they're holding each other close."
Andy observed the crowd for a few seconds before speaking again.
"Same with the calm ones." She said. "Except they don't know anyone, so they're not holding anyone close."
"The casual ones knew this was going to happen. They were probably told beforehand, or already knew about G.L.O.V.E. and H.I.V.E. before they came here." Said Andy.
Nick rolled her eyes.
"Again: way too much Criminal Minds." she said. Andy ignored this as Tammy cut in.
"Then what are we?" Tammy asked. Andy grinned.
"We're the awesome ones, of course." She replied. The four of them grinned back, before turning their attention to the man on the lectern.
J and J.J. waited in silence as they landed, and the door opened. When their belts had unfastened, they thought of escaping the guards, until they saw there was only one visible exit: a humongous metal door. The guards told them to head up the stone stairs to those very gates. The two of them slowly went up the steps, their heads turning in every direction.
The hangar wasn't very busy; barely anyone was left. Only a few burly guards were walking around, and there were only two men in lab coats checking the thing they just disembarked from.
When they reached the metal doors, they opened, leading them into an impressive room with polished black stone covering the floor and a majority of the walls. Metal doors were spread out on the walls, leading to what seemed like a maze.
'Like a hive.' J.J. thought, looking at the many guards stationed at each door.
J.J. placed his attention on the great granite statue of a large fist cracking the Earth, with the phrase "Do Unto Others" carved into the plinth at the bottom. In front of the structure was a short stage with a lectern in the middle, surrounded by about thirty other kids their age.
"Creepy." J said, frowning. J.J. nodded in agreement.
Once the doors behind them closed with a grinding shriek and a worrying crunch, a handsome but matured man stepped onto the podium. The man had fine lines, aging his face. He had a few stray gray hairs in his immaculately fixed raven hair, and he wore a black suit with a royal violet cravat to match. The man surveyed his audience first, before speaking.
The four girls gasped, as Maximilian Nero stepped onto the podium. They glanced at each other quickly, before looking back to where they were supposed to be looking at.
"Welcome, ladies and gentlemen, to your new home." He said. At the same time Andy was mouthing his speech, having memorized it word per word. As he spoke, Mel's eyes went from Nero to a flickering shadow behind him. She smiled, subtly motioning for her friends to look, and when they did, they grinned as well.
"Raven." Mel mouthed.
"…Welcome to H.I.V.E., the Higher Institute of Villainous Education."
The four girls jumped a little, as the display shown in the book appeared right in front of their eyes. However, they did their best to contain their awe, to hide their surprise. After a few moments though, they all smirked again, noticing Wing and Shelby fighting as though it were some elaborate dance they were performing.
"Yep, still a delicious muscled hunk of sexy man." Andy said. The other girls agreed, nodding their heads.
When the display ended, Nero asked for their attention. The four girls, though interested, didn't really pay attention. They knew his speech by heart anyway, so instead, they waited for Nero to finish his speech before being led to Plotting Room 2.
It amused them to no end when they saw Otto, smoking casually on the chair at the head of the long table in the middle of the room. Every detail was spot on from the book, from the screens with maps and charts, to the dark wood, ten meter long table surrounded by leather chairs. Even the symbol of G.L.O.V.E was carved into the hardwood table.
"Damn… that boy with a cigarette is hot." Nick said, smirking. The other three girls rolled their eyes, but smiled as they focused their attention on their teacher.
"Hello everyone. Please take your seat anywhere." Otto said, uncrossing his legs. The four girls took their seats beside each other, near Otto. They fixed blank looks on their faces as Otto began speaking again.
"So you're the new meat of HIVE?" He asked, grinning sadistically. Andy had to admit that it sent an unpleasant shiver down her spine. She looked to her friends, who smiled nervously back at her.
"My name is Otto Malpense." He began. "You can call me sir, or Mister Malpense. It is my pleasure," he emphasized his withering sarcasm with a grimace. "To introduce you all to a new year in HIVE. A short film will commence this tour, and then I will take you around the school. Afterwards, we will get your uniforms, and return here."
The large wall behind him suddenly lit up. The four of them realized it was a giant screen, disguised as a wall.
Strangely enough, the video presented was the exact same one that was mentioned in the first book of HIVE.
"Could they get any lazier?" Mel mumbled, and the four of them broke into the quietest of giggles.
"Now that you have an idea of what HIVE is like," Otto said, as the screen faded to black. "And what it offers, any questions?"
A young blonde boy raised his hand.
"Anything that does not concern my hair?"
The young boy put his hand down.
Another person, this time a young girl, raised her hand.
"Yes, Miss…"
"Miss Betty Gordon." She said haughtily. Andy narrowed her eyes, suspecting a spoiled brat in the room.
"Her name sounds like bitter gourd." muttered Mel. They silently laughed again.
"How long do you expect us to stay here?" Betty asked, glaring at the teacher. Otto shrugged, thought about it for a few moments, and then smiled.
"Like the video said, you're expected to stay here for six years, unless you die or go missing." He replied. Betty looked shocked, grimaced, then sat down. Otto smiled again.
"I've tried." He replied. Everyone stared at him.
"I tried to leave in my first year." He continued. The Fantabulous Four looked at each other, surprised. They didn't expect this.
"Me and my friends from the Alpha stream… We thought were so close to escaping." Otto said. "Then, when it came to the last leg, we found out we never really had a chance. Nero, the headmaster, figured out our plan from the beginning, and stopped it before it started."
He sighed.
"But… I'm glad I never left." He continued. "You may be apprehensive at first, but after one year, even one month, you'll start feeling at home here."
Betty's frown softened a bit as she sagged into her chair.
"Any other questions?" Otto asked.
An Asian boy raised his hand this time, looking a little nervous.
"Yes?"
"You mentioned something about a stream…" the teen said quietly. "What do you mean by that?"
Otto smiled slightly. "Well, Mister…"
"Hi-Hideaki." He stuttered. "Hideaki Kaede"
"Well Mister Hideaki," Otto started. "The school is split into four streams. Each stream has a unique area of expertise that the students within said stream excel in. The school's uniforms help tell the students apart by stream.
"The Alpha stream— your stream, wears black. The Alpha stream specializes in leadership and strategy education. The three other streams— the Henchman stream, the Technical stream and the Political/Financial stream wear blue, white and gray, respectively."
The Asian boy nodded in understanding.
"Any other questions?" Otto asked again. Everyone shook their heads.
"All right then!" he said, suddenly jumping up and grinning. Everyone jumped back at his excitement. "Let's get those uniforms at the Quartermaster, shall we?"
The door they entered opened again. Otto led them out the door, and into H.I.V.E.
So yeah. Say what you want to say!