ACT 1 – CHAPTER 6: Fire and Shadows

Flashback — Years Ago

A small living room. Toys clutter the carpet—plastic swords, LEGO bricks, and robot figures frozen mid-battle.

Six-year-old Axel sits cross-legged, lost in his own world of sound effects and imaginary fights.

From the kitchen:

Axel's Dad (cheerful): "Axel! Dinner's ready, come on!"

Axel: "Okay, Dad! Coming!"

The family gathers at the table. Warm light. Simple food. Familiar comfort.

Axel's Mom (calling upstairs): "Nathan! Come down! The food's getting cold!"

Footsteps thunder down. Nathan, Axel's older brother, appears—tall, cocky, and already hardened by life.

Axel's Dad: "Come on, sit down."

Nathan (half-smirking): "Alright, alright. Don't order me around like I'm still five."

Axel's Mom: "Watch your tone."

Nathan: "Whatever."

Axel's Dad: "Your principal called again."

Nathan keeps chewing, eyes pointedly avoiding his father's.

Axel's Dad (firm): "Stop making trouble. You're supposed to set an example for your brother."

Nathan (cold): "Yeah? Well, maybe you should try being here to set it yourself."

Axel's Mom: "Nathan!"

Silence.

Then a small voice:

Axel: "I wanna be like you, Dad."

The whole table stills.

Axel looks up, smiling.

Axel's Dad (soft): "…No, son. You should live your own life."

Axel: "But I wanna be just like you."

⸻

Back to Present – East University Hallway

CRACK!

A fist meets a face. An Education student stumbles back.

Axel moves like lightning—another punch, a swift kick. He weaves through the chaos, precise and brutal.

Cy (grunting): "They brought numbers!"

Migs (blocking a swing): "They brought the wrong ones!"

A hallway meant for walking is now a battlefield.

Students scramble out of the way as bodies crash into lockers. One Education student swings a mop handle.

Axel ducks.

SMASH!

The handle splinters.

Axel lands a spinning elbow to the guy's jaw—down.

Migs is holding his own but struggling, overwhelmed. Two students pin him against the wall.

Cy charges in and tackles them both, buying Migs time to recover.

The brawl intensifies.

⸻

Meanwhile — Student Council Lounge

The room is sleek. Leather couches. Marble coffee table. A fresh pot of tea steaming on the counter. Windows overlook the central quad of East University.

Three students sit calmly inside, untouched by the violence brewing below.

Maeve Roque: cold, composed, seated with a tablet in hand, legs crossed.

Emma: bubbly and blunt, scrolling through her phone.

Luna: laid-back, sipping tea, the sarcastic one of the trio.

Emma: "You guys wanna go out later? Milk tea run?"

Luna: "You say that every day."

Emma: "Because I mean it every day."

Maeve (without looking up): "You both have pending paperwork from yesterday's incident. No one's going anywhere."

Luna: "Ugh, buzzkill."

Emma (mock-pouting): "Maeve, live a little."

Maeve's gaze sharpens.

Maeve: "When you two stop treating the student council like a café, I'll 'live a little.' Until then—"

THUD.

GRUNT.

CRASH.

A locker down the hall slams.

The three pause.

Emma (blinking): "What was that?"

Maeve sets her tablet down, calm but alert.

She walks toward the door, heels clicking against the polished floor.

She opens it.

Her eyes narrow.

The hallway is chaos—Axel slams a punch into a student's ribs. Migs and Cy are fighting off a group of Education students. Lockers dented. Blood on the floor. Eyes wild.

Maeve (shouting): "STOOOOOP!"

Instant silence.

All heads turn.

Even the Education students freeze.

Maeve steps forward, flanked by Emma and Luna, who peek out from behind her.

The Education students immediately lower their heads.

Axel (wiping blood from his cheek, confused): "Who is she?"

Cy: "Maeve Roque. Student council president."

Migs: "And Elias's sister."

Maeve locks eyes with Axel. The calm in her voice is more dangerous than a scream.

Maeve: "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

Axel: "They jumped us."

Maeve: "And you turned a hallway into a war zone."

She looks to the Education students.

Maeve: "All of you. Back to your rooms. Now."

They scatter instantly.

She turns to Axel again.

Maeve: "You. With me."

Cy (smirking): "Good luck. They say she's fiercer than her brother."

Migs (stepping back): "Yup. You're on your own."

Maeve doesn't wait.

Maeve: "Follow me."

Axel watches her walk away, then glances at his friends.

Axel (sighs): "This school just keeps getting weirder."

He follows.

Emma and Luna trail behind with amused expressions.

Emma (whispering): "He's kinda cute."

Luna: "He's also bleeding."

Emma: "Still cute."

The lounge door swings shut behind them.

And just like that—Axel steps deeper into the politics of East University.

⸻

End of Chapter 6