Jayden & Alto

Jayden

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Lightning boomed in the distance, shaking the entire campus. Jayden didn't even know if he wanted to be on campus or in his dorm. Both options were terrible. Usually on October 30, he'd never get any sleep because he and Mateo were probably getting a drink in their dorm. But yesterday night, Jayden lay awake with an empty bed on his left. He tried to get an appointment with the directors in the Overhead to ask if DJ could room with him since his room is renovating, but they've been putting him to the side.

"JAYDEN!" a voice yelled. He shook as he looked up to see an angry Professor Vernon. He realized he was daydreaming. Ugh, you knew you were dead if you saw Vernon angry. I'm probably six feet under by the end of this.

"Yes, Professor," he said, everyone snickering when his voice cracked.

"Jayden, I called your name multiple times already. I know it's your birthday today, but please see me after class," the professor said quietly. Vernon was a young man, sent to the Sunken after their last defense teacher was heavily injured by Everest Hawking firing, and missing, a cannon. Long story. When class ended, Jayden was severely bruised by DJ's uppercuts and Heather's nunchucks. His power seemed to have lost all its effect on people, and he couldn't focus like before. As everyone else was sprinting down the hallways to get back to their dorms, Jayden slowly stumbled his way to Professor Vernon.

"Mr. Hudson, not feeling yourself today, I assume," Vernon said calmly while organizing his notes.

"Yeah, I guess," Jayden replied, eyes staring at the wooden floor scorched by firebombs.

"Jayden, I'm serious, you either tell me what's wrong or he'll have no choice but to give you detention. You'll be lucky if I don't send you to Professor Kane's room." the professor stated blandly, peering up at the boy from his papers. Jayden, seeing that he threatened him so harshly already, decided to give in.

"Mateo...his death is just a bit disappointing, that's all," he murmured.

"A bit? Child, we all know your relationship with Mateo. You don't have to hide it. All the professors, including Kane, feel bad for you since we know you're such a good student," Vernon began, smiling. "Which is why we're promoting you. Or ULTRASONIC is promoting you." ULTRASONIC is promoting me? I'm like a speck compared to the entire Sunken, why did they feel bad for me? Jayden's eyes went wide in awe. No words came out of his mouth.

"Wow. Sir, may I ask what I will be promoted to?" he eventually uttered. The professor laughed.

"You may indeed know that you are being promoted to the occupation of Guarder, the most important job in both cities. They usually have former gladiators or soldiers come to do this. Still, they believe that your power is strong enough." he felt like he was on Cloud 9. Everything seemed unreal. This couldn't be happening, why is this happening? A Guarder has so much responsibility there has to be some kind of catch. He stared Vernon dead in the eye, reaching to find any source of dishonesty in his words. Then, in a single second, he concluded that the professor was actually telling the truth. Even though Jayden was quick, Vernon noticed and looked towards the door. He caught a feeling of sadness from the defense teacher as he stood up.

"Mr. Jayden N. Hudson, you have been invited to the Overhead. Please take Outercraft A5023 that is waiting for you in the West Wing. All the information will be given to you when you arrive. Have a safe trip," the loudspeaker boomed, startling him. The professor didn't even bat an eye.

"I guess that's your cue," Vernon commented.

"Yeah, thanks," Jayden stammered as he grabbed his bag, too excited to be polite.

"Don't get too nervous, prepare for the unexpected. And don't forget to listen," the professor whispered. Don't forget to listen. He thought as he sprinted down the hallways to the West Wing. Don't forget to listen.

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Alto

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"Mat-sorry Alto, do we have any water left?" Janus croaked, his voice sounding hoarse. They had gotten so wrapped up on telling their stories that they hadn't even thought of supplies. Luckily, there were still some villages willing to trade some water for Janus's decent amount of leftover money, but at where there were now, there hadn't been a single civilization in sight.

"Yeah, yeah you can drink the rest of the bottle," Alto said. They've been walking and running all day and night but we aren't even close to the ocean. "Hey Janus, can I ask you something?"

"Sure, go ahead," Janus said contently, gulping down the water from the bottle.

"Ok, so how do you know about ULTRASONIC if you said that nobody except people in Sunken and Overhead know about it?" he asked.

"My sister was taken as an Exceptional, right? But they didn't want me. I lived in the orphanage in the Commonwealth with her after my parents left us when he was 10. She was my only friend. After she left I tried escaping. That's how he got this," Janus explained, rolling up his right sleeve and pant leg. The skin underneath the clothing was blistered and brownish, contrasting with his pale complexion. He then lifted his shirt up, revealing more blisters and darkened skin. What was interesting was that they were only on the right side of his body.

"Heat wave," Alto said, his surprise showing no matter how hard he tried to control it.

"Yeah, when I had escaped into a forest, one of those had struck and burned down most of the trees, causing a wildfire. I like to think of myself as a survivor, but my injuries still withstand me from doing some stuff," Janus confessed, a small tear trailing down his cheek.

"It's ok Janus," Alto cooed, not really knowing what to do. He wasn't the greatest at comforting people.

"No, Alto you don't get it. After what had happened I was brought here by a girl. She never told me her name or why she brought me to the other side of the ocean. She said I was important, and she told me where my sister was taken. She was like family," he paused. "Then she left," Janus said as he sat down on the grass.

"Keep going," Alto said, curious. He could see in Janus's eyes that there were things that he had bottled up for too long. He sighed, then continued.

"After she left I began seeing things. Seeing things at night. I saw my mom, my dad, and the girl," Janus murmured.

"Do you know…" Alto trailed off, not wanting to finish the sentence.

"No, I know what you're asking. No, I don't know if they're alive," Janus said calmly, his voice giving nothing away. "But I know one thing. The girl kept telling me to look. To keep his eyes open. She's been telling me this in my dreams since she had left but not yesterday. Yesterday I was with you throughout the night and I didn't see her," he whispered the last sentence, staring off into space. "I think she was telling me to look for you."