Chapter 17: Ready! Set! Go!
Heyo! What's up dudes and dudettes? So, I don't really have much to say before we start this chapter, which of course marks the beginning of a New Arc. Since I posted my Arc List like… tenish chapters ago I have completely overhauled it. So this is an Arc that originally wasn't meant to happen, but rather replaced the Class FH1 Arc that was originally slated to go here. This Arc, which is currently unnamed (let me know if you have any suggestions) is going to be based fully on the exploits of Class FH2 and I'm unsure of how long it's gonna last.
Another thing, as it seems a few people may have gotten confused with the side stories. These are not Arcs in this story. This main story will last for 3 Parts, which will be posted as separate stories to keep them from being too dense. The side stories (Teardrop, Vesuvius, etc.) are also going to be posted separately. While these will be important to the story, you don't necessarily have to read them. All the info in them will be hinted at or re-explored in the main story. It's just a way to flesh out the world while not taking away from the actual plot. They will not be a full length story, at most lasting 20 chapters, and since I have them already planned out it will give me time to work on making Parts 2 & 3 better. Also, this isn't going to happen for a long, long time with the one-a-week upload schedule. I hope this clears up some concerns and if you still have any questions you know where to message me.
As usual, big thanks to Hiatus for Beta-ing. If these last ten or so chapters have looked better grammatically or flowed better it is largely thanks to him.
Also, if you wanna see how Class FH2 looks, head on over to the Discord. One of our newer arrivals (StrifeStellar Mizo) has done some amazing work bringing these characters to life. The link is in my profile.
That's it. I hope you all enjoy and as always, if you have any questions, comments, or concerns shoot me a message.
Purpose of a Hero
September 25, 2317
Melody awoke with a start, gasping for air and throwing her covers off. Her pajamas, powder blue and covered with chibi likenesses of America's top Heroes clung to her skin with sweat, while the afterimages of black fire and charred toys were still fresh on her mind. 'They're getting worse. Stupid, stupid, stupid... it's been almost a week, when is this gonna stop? You've gotta get over it Melody, you're a Hero in training. Once you graduate you'll see far worse than some…' The redhead cut off her train of thought and leaped out of bed. A glance at her battered alarm clock revealed she'd woken up two hours earlier than normal, which gave her ample time to go through with her plan and still get in her training, breakfast, and shower.
Quickly throwing a jacket over her PJs, Melody trodded into the deserted halls of the girl's dorm and made her way toward the only place she could think of for complete privacy… the roof. Technically, the roof was off-limits to students and the door leading up to it was always locked, but for a girl able to walk through walls this had become her secret getaway the moment she had discovered it. The first time had been when she was exploring the dorm on the day she moved in. She'd seen the 'Roof Access Restricted' sign and immediately disregarded it. She'd been blown away by the view of the entire campus that the high elevation gave her and claimed the spot as her own, though she doubted she had anyone to contend with that was willing to break the rules so flippantly. 'Nathan is a horrible influence. I feel bad for his poor, impressionable little brother. He'll grow up to be quite the troublemaker,' she thought as the cool night air sent a chill to her core with every breath. She stared up at the sky, which was mostly hidden by the smog of nearby Manhattan, for a few moments before remembering the reason she'd came in the first place.
She pulled out her phone, scrolled through her contacts until she came to a certain one, and hit the call button. The phone rang several times before the gruff voice at the other end finally answered, albeit a bit groggily. "Eh, who's at?"
"Dad, it's me. Wake up you old fart."
"Melly? MELLY, MY DARLING! It's been so long since you last called. Your poor father has been stricken with worry!" Melody rolled her eyes at her father's theatrics. The man truly had no understanding of the word 'shame'.
"Yeah, sorry. School has been a killer these past few weeks. We just started Calculus and learning about the Rhode Island Seven. Plus, Mr. Holl has been keeping us to lectures and exercises to increase our Quirk control for almost a month now. I wish we'd get back to the practical stuff." Seemingly having recovered from his overly-dramatic episode, Carlyle hummed thoughtfully over the connection.
"Well, you are just starting out, Melly. You must have patience. Learn from your father! I still have not eviscerated that Antonio boy yet, despite how often he disobeys me and screws up," the middle-aged man said hotly. Again, Melody was caught between amusement and exasperation, which was a common combination when she talked with her father.
"It's Anthony dad, jeez. And you be nice, Anthony is a nice guy, you just bully him."
"WHAT!? Melly, are you...no, Anthony wouldn't have the guts. Even if he did I would tear them out of him if he so much as-"
"Dad," Melody replied warningly. Her father fell silent at her tone and had a momentary lapse in his sense of reality. Just for a moment, a very brief moment, he heard the love of his life taking the place of his daughter on the other end of the line. But Carlyle snapped out of it as his daughter sighed and began to speak again, this time her voice more melancholy. "Sorry, I… uh, I didn't call just to catch up. I promise I'll come by the shop this weekend. I'll even bring Nathan along so you can extort his appetite. I just…"
"Melody? What's the matter?" Any levity evaporated from his tone with concern replacing it. It had been a while since he'd heard her sound so uneven.
"You know how we've been doing the cleanup for the Yonkers Incident? My team and I were in charge of demolishing buildings the coordinators had designated as 'To damaged to justify repairs'. We did this for three Thursdays and did a pretty good job. It… it was my job to scout the house for weak points. But, last week I… there was this one house that… well, it was badly burnt from the Villain-"
"Spitfire," Carlyle interrupted and immediately cursed himself for it as he heard his daughter inhale sharply. He quickly apologized and a moment later she continued.
"...so the building was pretty much in ruins, and I had to find a place with enough space for me to be able to undo my Quirk. Well, I… um, I found a room with four sturdy walls. I shifted and entered the room and…" There was a long pause as Melody's eyes became watery. As soon as she felt her reaction she angrily wiped the tears away, her face burning with shame. With a deep breath, she began again. "I entered the room through the closet and… let's just say the recovery team wasn't very thorough on their first go-round."
"I see. I'm very sorry you had to see that Melody. People these days get so caught up with the glamour that comes with the Pro Hero lifestyle they forget that with fame, also comes tragedy. More than anyone else, a Hero will be subjected to the world's worst." Her father stopped for a moment, almost as if he were trying to decide his next words very carefully. "Only the strongest people can survive in the Hero world. There will be times you question your decision to travel this road, my darling. Whether you continue down that road or take your chance at the next fork is a choice you will be faced with countless times."
"I will become a Hero. I just… the purpose of a Hero is to protect those who can't protect themselves. I saw the room. These… people… were massive Hero fans. I can't help but think they died waiting for someone to help that never came. If a Hero couldn't protect them then…"
"There is no true way to overcome the horrors you will undoubtedly see. The fact that you feel anything is proof of your humanity," Carlyle told her, his voice grim. Melody wondered in that moment if her father was speaking from experience. She knew he'd had a hard life, growing up Quirkless and watching his friends and relatives lead successful careers, while he was stuck in his dingy little pizzeria left behind by his own father, who also had no powers. "I'll tell you what my grandfather once told me; Do not pity the dead, for their suffering is over. Pity the living, for theirs has just begun. Your great-grandfather was among the best Heroes of his age. Our family, especially your mother's side, is stocked to the brim with Heroes and Villains. The Halloway and Christenson names are synonymous with some of the best and worst people of the Quirk Age. If this is any indicator, then you will go on to do great things Melody. No matter which path you choose, you've always got my support."
"Thanks, dad. I should probably get going. I've still got school today." Her father bid her farewell, though he still sounded worried, and she hung up. The morning was quiet, even the birds hadn't begun to sing, as Melody clutched her phone tightly in her hand. Despite the talk with her dad, which actually did help her mood some, she still couldn't get the sight of what she'd seen that day out of her mind. With a sigh, she began making her way back towards the stairs but stopped and jumped behind a ventilation duct when the door burst open with a flurry of colorful swear words. It was Clara.
"Piece of shit bastard! How the hell can he just...GAH! I hate him so much. Thinks I'm his pawn, does he? Just his misguided attempt at 'perfection'. Bah! Selfish prick, I'm gonna rip his goddamn throat out!" In all their time at school, Melody had come to know her magenta-haired classmate as the very incarnation of anger and teenage arrogance. This, she realized, wasn't her normal anger… this was full blown rage. Clara swore again, whirled around, and slammed her fist into the brick wall surrounding the door and the stairwell behind it. "One of these days I swear I'm gonna destroy him. He wants to see strength? I'll show hi—who's there!?"
"Uh." Before Melody could react, Clara surged over to her hiding place and grabbed her by the collar of her jacket. Due to their difference in height, with Melody standing just under five foot five and Clara easily clearing six foot two, the redhead's feet swayed wildly beneath her, trying to find solid ground but to no avail. The look in Clara's blood red eyes was nothing short of pure hatred.
"You dirty little sneak. Give me one reason why I shouldn't beat you to a bloody pulp for eavesdropping?" Clara demanded. Melody stayed silent for a moment, wondering how the other girl had found her out when she realized something Clara had mentioned to their teacher when forming teams in Yonkers. 'Her hearing is on superhuman levels. I wonder why. With her Quirk, it would be logical to assume her hearing was worse than normal or even in the process of deteriorating. Maybe her Quirk doesn't affect her? Or her eardrums or whatever are stronger than the average person's?' A quick but vicious shake snapped her back to reality and she was left staring in shock at the livid girl holding her. "Well? You gonna give me an answer or can I just skip right to the beating?"
"S-Sorry, Clara. I was just...doing some stargazing." Clara gave her a deadpan look and gestured upwards with her free hand.
"No stars to gaze at, crybaby." Melody sighed and hung her head, feeling for the first time just how sleep deprived she was from the constant night terrors.
"Fine. I had to call my dad because I've been having nightmares about seeing two dead kids, alright?" The words that left her mouth sounded a lot harsher than they had in her head and she hadn't really meant to tell Clara about the kids or her nightmares. To her shock, the angry teen's eyes shifted to some other, dare she say it, softer emotion she hadn't yet seen from her classmate. 'Sympathy? Understanding? I didn't know Clara could feel anything other than anger.' However, the emotion quickly vanished and Clara flung her away with disgust, though Melody took her unbeaten state as a sign that the flicker of emotion hadn't been a figment of her imagination.
"Tch, you're not even worth my time anyway, crybaby. Weaklings like you don't deserve my attention," Clara said dismissively. Maybe it was her recent traumatic events, or the fact that she had gotten eight hours of sleep total over the course of the weekend but whatever it was in that moment, Melody didn't care.
"I am not weak!" She growled, glaring daggers at Clara, who seemed a bit surprised that her verbal punching bag was punching back.
"Oh please, you've done nothing but lose and be mediocre since we got here. That first day you beat someone weaker than you and promptly got smashed by wolf boy, then you score in the middle of the pack for every test… shit, the only thing I've seen you even look semi-competent in was combat training, and you took on Kazani!" Clara scoffed. Melody opened her mouth to riposte, but suddenly a pang of realization hit her. 'She's… not wrong. All I've done since arriving at the Forge is just kinda… exist. I haven't really stood out at all and my test scores are nothing compared to Hazel and Lyon. What have I been doing?' Clara obviously knew she'd hit a soft spot and laughed. "Pathetic. Not even an ounce of a denial? Come on crybaby, I thought you had more guts than that."
"I… you're right. I am weak," Melody admitted, feeling a sharp jab of self-doubt that she quickly smothered down. Before Clara could relish in her victory, however, the redhead retorted. "But so are you. Heroes are supposed to be who people depend on to provide support and aide. All you do is scare people off. Being a Hero isn't about the pursuit of power, it's about helping others."
"That's bullshit. How can anyone save others if they don't have the strength!? Power is all that matters. Just look at that weakling we have in the number one spot. He couldn't even stop one Villain in time to stop the others from blowing up an entire city," Clara shot back, her tone full of loathing. Melody opened her mouth but before she could get a word off, her classmate was already skulking back down the stairs. In the silence that followed, the redhead sighed and sat down on the lip of the roof, her feet dangling over the hundred-foot drop. 'I wonder who she was so mad at? I've never seen her that angry before. Maybe Seismos? But, from what I've heard he's a pretty pleasant guy when he isn't berating other Heroes for being wea… oh. That's gotta suck. I couldn't imagine the old man doing anything other than encouraging me. Ugh, this is too much to handle this early. I'm just gonna go start my training early.'
Purpose of a Hero
Melody's face scrunched up in annoyance when she donned her Hero costume. While they'd been required to wear their suits during the cleanups in Yonkers, she still hadn't quite gotten used to the design. 'I don't see any of the boys' suits being overly tight. Stupid perverted Support company.' She exited the changing room and threw her normal clothes into a locker before joining the rest of the class… except for Kira who was, unsurprisingly, late to class and therefore started dressing in her costume much later than anyone else. The redhead joined Andi and Diana as they spoke in excited tones about the class ahead of them. It was to be their first practical exercise since the first day when they'd fought in the labyrinth. The entire class seemed to be in a good mood, even Clara… though Melody assumed that was due to the prospect of letting loose her anger without getting hauled off to the principal's office. "Hey girls."
"Hey Melody," they chorused. Before they could continue their conversation though, Kira joined them in spectacular fashion… that is to say, she ran towards them, tripped, and crashed into Melody.
"Sorry!" Kira cried as she helped her friend regain her footing.
"'S fine, Kira." Just then Mr. Holl entered, holding a clipboard and looking far more jovial than he had in recent weeks.
"Alright, I've got something good planned for this week's class. Time to show off just how much progress you've made over the past month, so do your best and… just like last time, only two teams of the four will pass." This statement brought a collective groan from the students, many of which were still sour over their failing grade in the last practical. Mr. Holl had to try and hold back his grin. 'Good thing they haven't gotten their report cards yet so I can still pull the 'only a few of you will pass' trick. Oh, how I love messing with their minds.' He cleared his throat and pressed the button to lower the room into the underground section of the school. "Now, today's class is all about progress. Specifically the progress you've each made in controlling and strengthening your Quirk."
"As insane as his methods are, he isn't wrong," Kira whispered in Melody's ear. This was something the redhead agreed with wholeheartedly. The past month they'd done nothing but lectures and pushed their Quirks to the absolute limit in order to strengthen them. In combination with how much she was using her Quirk nowadays, Melody felt as if she'd grown much more since coming to school than she had in eight years of physical combat training with her dad. The ride continued for a few minutes, even including a few horizontal changes in direction that surprised the class until they entered another cavern.
"Alright, here we are… Field IV." Unlike the cavernous room that held the Labyrinth, this one was far smaller and shaped more rectangularly. From their elevated position, the class could see their task for the day in all of its horrifying glory. "Today's exercise… Obstacle Relay."
"Holy crap," Melody muttered. The obstacle course itself was split into two different lanes with four parts each. On one lane there was a destroyed city block, a small lake with dark shapes moving just beneath its surface, a ravine with a rickety wooden bridge, and a section of highway. The other held a small derelict town like the ones Melody had seen in old movies, what looked to be a river of actual bubbling lava, a dark alleyway, and a simple black-surfaced field. Separating each of the different areas was an obscenely tall climbing wall with very few hand and footholds.
"As you can see this is no run-of-the-mill obstacle course. Each piece of this was designed by former and current teachers of U.S.A.E.I. with the sole purpose of making a student's life an absolute nightmare. Today, these nightmares become realities for you," Mr. Holl chuckled. He'd always loved the looks on his student's faces when he first brought them here. There was always horror, fascination, and disbelief but occasionally he was treated to some even better reactions. Kira had taken a step back and was now sitting on the floor, Lyon's grin had grown in size and looked even more deranged than normal, and Clara looked as if someone had just given her the exact present she'd asked for for Christmas. "Now if you please direct your attention to the board, you'll see your teams for today..."
"NO!" Two female voices roared in unison. Melody sighed as she looked over to Kira and Clara, who were, as usual, at each other's throats, then back to the projection which showed four teams of four students apiece.
Team 1: Andi, Marcus, Sirius, Eris
Team 2: Alexander, Melody, Hazel, Diana
Team 3: Lyle, Andrew, Rylee, Lyon
Team 4: Clara, Oliver, Kira, Narruk
"Great," Oliver muttered, glaring his three teammates, two of whom were already fighting whilst the third attempted to pull them apart. Meanwhile, Hazel and Alexander walked over to meet her and Diana, while Andi left with a happy 'later' to join her own team.
"Hey, Alex, Hazel," Melody greeted with a small wave, which was mimed by Diana.
"Hm."
"Camellia," the brunette corrected. For the past few weeks, she'd been trying to get her classmates to call her by her middle name, but to largely no avail as most of her classmates either forgot or, in Clara's case at least, didn't care. The only one who seemed to not only remember but actually enjoy calling her by what he said was 'a friendly nickname' was Lyon.
"Alright, so here's how this is going to work. Teams One and Two will station each start by choosing one person to start the race and putting the rest of their teammates at the top of each climbing wall. The teams will race at the same time and not only will each person have to clear a sector of the course, but will also have full permission to use their Quirk to incapacitate or delay their opponent. Whichever team finished with the best time will be declared the winner, so if you haven't already get with your teams. You have ten minutes to strategize before we begin," Mr. Holl explained. "Teams One and Two will be on Course One, while Three and Four will take on Course 2. Got it? Good, now get strategizing."
"Alright, so how do we wanna do this?" Melody asked after a moment of awkward silence amongst her group. "We've got the city, the lake, the ravine, and the highway. Not to mention the other team."
"I've got an idea," Hazel said, her eyes scanning the map of the course that was projected onto the wall at the front of the prep room.
"Hit us with it," Diana encouraged. Hazel took a deep breath and pointed towards the first area, the ruined city.
"Melody, we'll open with you. You've got not only the most experience crawling through buildings but the best-suited Quirk of the four of us." Melody felt a pit form in her stomach as she remembered her experiences in Yonkers. 'Why does the universe hate me?' She pondered before sighing.
"You're right. I suppose I'll take it then," she said dejectedly, getting a sympathetic look from Alexander, one of only three of her classmates that knew what she'd seen. Hazel nodded and then turned to Diana.
"Komodo Dragons are fantastic swimmers, so you can take the lake, right?" The dragoness let out a sigh of relief and nodded gratefully.
"Easy as pie, those shadows are worrisome, but I can probably outswim them if need be." From her tone of voice, Melody could tell Diana wasn't speaking out of arrogance, but confidence. 'Dad always said there was a very fine line between the two… granted he was always talking about Nathan but that's beside the point.'
"This one is a bit difficult, but Alex are you okay taking the bridge? I know you're probably the heaviest, but this is most likely our best shot." Alexander looked somewhat annoyed at this, but nodded and turned his gaze towards the map. While it wasn't the most detailed, even Melody could tell the bridge wouldn't pass even the most primitive of safety codes.
"You'll take the highway then?" Melody inquired, looking at the map warily. It was the only part of the course that was a mystery to her. The first three zones were fairly straightforward, but the final one could go a myriad of different ways, each as bad as the last.
"Yep. I have an idea of what it could do, but I won't say anything. Andi has been listening to us this whole time," Hazel stated, turning her head to look at the other girl, who looked as if she'd just been caught stealing a treat from the cookie jar.
"So they know our strategy? What's to say they won't counter it with their own?" Alexander probed, glaring at his sister on the other team, who was currently making faces at her twin. Hazel sighed and studied the other team for a moment.
"If I'm right, they'll send Eris out to counter you, Marcus to counter me, Sirius, or rather Epiphany would probably want revenge on Melody for their last bout so that's her counter, and that leaves Andi to deal with Diana. Be careful of her Sickness Frequency, by the way," Hazel added to Diana. Melody frowned and opened her mouth to ask another question when a pair of loud voices broke apart the uneasy tension in the air.
"PISS OFF KAZANI!"
"MAKE ME RAMIREZ!"
"Of course," Melody murmured to herself as she turned to look at her classmates. The two were both red-faced and nearly nose to nose with one another. Despite the fact that Clara was using her Quirk, Kira seemed just able to keep in line with her volume. When she glanced over to Mr. Holl, Melody noticed his neutral expression and realized something. 'He planned this.'
"Both of you-" Narruk tried to cut in but was interrupted.
"YOU STAY OUT OF THIS WOLF BOY!" Clara exploded. Melody grimaced and felt a bit of pity for her friend. Just a few weeks ago he'd confided to her, in an attempt to try and cheer her up after she nearly lost her head when her Quirk failed, that his control was shaky around the time of the full moon, which was just two days prior and it was around this time each cycle that his instincts became more animalistic. So when the boy surged forward and grabbed Clara and Kira by their collars, Melody was the only one in the class that didn't seem surprised.
"Enough of this! We're all on the same team here, so stop the hardass routine and let's work together!" He demanded. It was even less surprising to Melody when Clara retaliated by planting her boot into Narruk's chest and knocking him back a few feet, freeing herself in the process.
"Touch me again, shit-wolf and I will tear you limb from limb," the magenta-haired girl threatened. Usually, the level-headed Narruk would have let this go, but Melody saw the feral look in his eyes and just barely had time to get in between the two before he pounced.
"Knock it off, guys!" She pleaded though this fell on deaf ears as Clara very easily swept her aside, an action that seemed to further enrage Narruk. Thankfully, before the two could clash, Andrew stepped forwards and waved his arm. In an instant, Narruk and Clara each stopped as their arms were forced behind their backs, almost as if they were wearing handcuffs.
"That's enough of that," the gravity user said. It was at this moment that Mr. Holl stepped forward.
"Alright, well there's the nucleus of this lesson. You brats have got to learn teamwork. Even if you decide to be a solo Hero when you graduate, you'll still be called on to work with teams from time to time and you must be ready for that. Now, get back with your teams and the next ones to act out of line will fail. No tricks this time," the teacher announced.
"Tricks?" Melody asked inquisitively. Derrick Holl swore under his breath and shook his head.
"Nothing, now it's been about ten minutes. Teams One and Two to your positions if you'd please."
Purpose of a Hero
There we have it. Melody still isn't quite over seeing dead people, Clara has daddy issues, and Narruk...well there are a few very inappropriate jokes you could make, but I'm not trying to piss anyone off. Hope you guys enjoyed and… Let's get to the preview.
NEXT TIME ON THE PURPOSE OF A HERO!
Chapter 18: Fight or Flight