Chapter 1: “New beginning” my ass

The world we were taken to was called "Fracture". And, well, there's no simple way to put this, it's in another dimension. I know that's weird, fucking trust me I know it is, but ill try to dumb it down. It's not like an alternate universe that still exists in parallel to our own, but an entirely separate reality with a whole bunch of different universes or something, that's how it was explained to me later, so that's what I'm going with now. It's the best I got, so if it still doesn't make sense, tough, I'm not a fucking astrophysicist like Einstein or Hawking, what do you want from me?. 

The people of Fracture, using a substance known as shards, are able to enhance weapons, structures, clothes, vehicles, you name it, allowing them to become stronger and more durable. They didn't tell us the exact specifics, only that they used shards to enhance the ships that came to get us, was fishy as fuck if you ask me, but that was just my septic mind back then. I learned the truth much later actually, still just as bloody strange. 

What really happened was a large black portal orb thing appeared in the centre of the continent, and using the shards, the ships were able to pass through that way. I don't know why to this day they never told us the truth about that, well I mean I know of course, but no one else does. I don't really care though, it doesn't bother me in any way, not like I want to go home now anyway. 

Fracture is mainly one super massive continent that covers most of the planet's surface, just like Pangea did back on earth. Its name, Lunaros. The ocean covers the rest of the surface. The majority of the population, human population that is, live in four cities that are spread across the continent, one in the north, east, south and west. We were taken to the city in the east of the continent, the city known as "Shroud". It was there our new lives would begin, but not like any of us expected. We learned that those who saved us, were actually students, students of a school, whose job it was to train those to fight the monsters that stole our home from us. "Reapers", that was the name of the warriors that defended us, only those who possessed unique abilities and strength were allowed to carry the title, and protect us from the "Wraiths", twisted creatures whose origin was veiled in mystery. 

The only thing that was really known about them, was that they spawned from the pools of black water that appeared on the school field, and that the water can also travel across dimensions as well. But really, they wanted to kill us, so we had to kill 'em back, not much more to it when you think about it. People of the world did possess powers, I should have clarified, it is only the truly brave and selfless that offer to become Reapers, corny bastards. It was decided that we were to be housed at the school which trained the students, no doubt as most of us were just kids, and staying with other kids seemed like a far better idea than just letting us loose in the city. 

Torch was now our home, well, not everyone's. The first few days there were great, don't get me wrong. Upon arriving, we learned that others, similar to us, were also saved in our world. 

Learned this later but apparently, when going through the portal, that the ships got spat out in random parts across Earth, allowing them to go to the closest Wraiths and rescue those closest. We were the first to arrive at the school, still high on adrenaline and bouncing off the walls. They sat us down in the eastern courtyard and sent some of the other students to get us food and clothes. We then watched as the other ships arrived with those who had also been saved. 

A sight greeted me then, which was heart-warming to the core. I saw many friends get off those ships, friend's that I thought I would never get to meet in my life on earth, but there they were, walking towards me. Brandon, Teige, Steve, Luke, Kyle, Jayden, Enrique and a whole bunch of people they seemed to know as well. I saw other people I knew as well arrive, Kris, Tynan, Nicholas, Carlos, Robert, Ryan, and Little Bear, and many more. 

It was probably one of my more happy moments in this new place, my best friend's in the world were right in front of my eyes, and I couldn't wait to start mucking about. 

The next day was when the grief hit in, I'll keep this short as this isn't the best thing to hear about. Lot of crying, hugging, holding and other sad stuff as we realised we had just lost everything, families, homes, other friends. As cold as it was, I got over my grief rather quickly compared to many others. I knew my family wouldn't want me to be frozen by this, especially in this new situation where I knew I had to help look after everyone. Well that was the idea at least. I guess I was just lucky I had that train of thought, others took years to get over their grief and start really living again.

Things hadn't been going to plan for me lately, and they didn't intend to do so, just because I was having happy thoughts.

A week after settling in, meeting the students, teachers and student teachers (ST's), and dealing with their grief, everything changed. 

The powers, the ones seen in the students of Fracture, began to manifest in the Earthborn, which is what they called us. Within hours, every Earthborn was undergoing testing of some kind, to draw out and test their power. Some were incredibly strong, others like my friends Teige and Alexa, obtained wings. Teige's were large wings like a crow and could control golden lightning, Alexa's were more scaly with additional necromancy powers. The powers we developed were incredible to those undergoing the testing. Kris was able to use his blood to form gauntlets and beat the shit out of everything they threw at him. Brandon, both ice and fire ability, half and half. Every one of my friends developed the most amazing powers, whether to heal or kill, strike or defend, they were incredible and absurdly strong powers. 

'What about me?' I hear you saying, yes well, the fates are assholes. I didn't get any powers. I did all the tests, and no matter what the outcome was, I didn't get any powers. I pushed myself to the limit to try and get one to appear, but nothing worked. At first, I was comforted by my friends, with them saying, "Don't worry, you don't need 'em', you're awesome without powers" or "Be patient, they'll pop up soon, I'm sure'' but they never did. My powers never appeared, no blaze of light, no ball of darkness, nothing. I was plain, I was nothing, and the school was about to make sure I knew that.

Not all the students were as accommodating as the rest, the despised the idea of letting a bunch of nobodies join their school and then just suddenly get powers and show them up, it really, really pissed them off. It didn't matter that they were practically refugees, these students, many of whom were ST's, were being upstaged and they couldn't stand that . And yet what could they do, these Earthborn were under the schools protection, the one excelling couldn't be touched. So when word began to spread of an Earthborn without powers, they saw their chance. I started off slow, with a small group of ST's using their authority within the school body and other students' teachers, they began to manipulate the other Earthborn. One ST in particular used their power to slowly fade me out of the minds of my friends to a more aggressive extent. His name is Rudy. 

The powers the Fracture born students trained so hard to learn, control and master, were simply like child's play to these invaders, and making me suffer, the only one they could get to, was just their own sick twisted idea of revenge. These asshats would always harass me when no one was looking, knocking me over, throwing my books around, with things eventually escalating to physical abuse from time to time. I couldn't go to any teachers, which is what I know you're saying I should have done in those moments. But none of them knew who I was, Rudy had mentally manipulated them all. Many just saw me as an unwanted student, the one just taking up a seat, they didn't give a damn if I was being bullied or not. 

My friends, the ones who were resistant to the memory power, tried to comfort me as best they could, but it just made it worse. My friend Alexa, using her necromantic powers, would carve me little good luck charms and other trinkets, which the student teachers would take from me whenever they kicked the shit out of me. Eventually, I stopped accepting them, as they quickly stopped feeling like good luck to me. My other friends, school friends would also try to reach out, trying to talk to me, sit with me at lunch, and try to come by my room every now and again. Afterwards, without fail, I would either get a stern talking to from the assholes, or they would threaten, then attack me. 

The most persistent three to do this, was my best friend Sam, and my good friends Lewis and Paige. Lewis was the most friendly, as despite what was happening, he tried to convince me to try and ask out my old high school crush, who was also trying to support me.

"Now's the perfect time" He would say, "She's trying to help you so much, so it's clear she cares about you", but, in the end, I couldn't bring myself to do it, I didn't want to drag her into this mess I was being sucked into, it just didn't feel right to me in any sense. 

This continued for about 5 months, all the while I just ended up ignoring his ideas and the more they tried to remain friends, the more pain it caused me. He still tried to talk to me, and approach me, as did the others who were resistant until eventually they stopped. The next time I saw them, I was but a stranger. I had been fully forgotten by the Earthborn, I was all alone.

As the months dragged on, after being fully isolated at the ST's mercy…well I won't lie, I got low. The lowest I'd ever gotten. When you're pushed to the point I was, the other alternatives are not as readily apparent as one would hope. Around a year and half past the day of 'arrival', I threw myself off the eastern cliff face and down into the ocean below. It had been a bad day, like a really bad day. Had gotten the crap kicked out of me like usual, had my library books stolen, treated like nothing by those that acknowledged my existence, and of course, ignored by those that didn't. I know that seems trivial, but when the same thing continues to happen day after day, week after week, well, you start to believe the things they say. This resulted in me, on that day, limping across the courtyard with the cliff edge in sight, and a completely blank mind. I felt nothing, thought nothing, I just simply walked. As I neared the edge I felt the swell of joy I think it was, that this was about to be the end to all my pain and sorrow. There were a few students, third years I think, sitting on the edge talking amongst themselves, when they noticed me limping. If they called out to me, I didn't hear it, all I remember is the feeling of concrete underfoot and then the sound of rushing wind. The next thing I knew after that was the smell of fish. I opened my eyes to find myself in a fisherman's house, somewhere on the water front of the city. The man had pulled me from the water, patched me up and watched over me till I woke. I had lived through the kindness of that man. A stranger to him, and yet he saved me all the same. I said nothing to him the entire time I was in his company, which was only a few days. He said many things such as how I shouldn't be alive by any stretch, and it must have been a miracle to have found me. I ignored his words like the fool I was, distrusting anything he did, thinking there was an underlying plot or that he would beat me any moment, like I had come to expect these past months from those around me. Either way, after those few days, I was gone from his home, and made my way back to the school. Why I went back I'm not sure, I could have stayed in the city, made a living for myself with the fisherman, and no one would be any the wiser in that shithole. But I didn't, and I think part of me regrets that, not knowing the future I could have had with that man. I can't change that now though, or anything that I suffered through.