"Welcome back to E.O.S, Ms. Akane! Please follow me as I guide you to your new dorm!"
I stared at the drone hovering in front of me, blinking in amazement. Its sleek, silver design gleamed under the sunlight, and its glowing blue eye tracked me as it spoke.
"A new AI? Cool. What model are you?" I asked, reaching out to grab it for a closer look.
SMACK!
"Agh-! what the heck?!" I yelped, yanking my hands back. A sharp sting pulsed through my fingers. I looked down and saw faint red marks. The thing had smacked me with a ruler!
The drone hovered a little higher, as if to stay out of my reach.
"Apologies Ms. Akane," it said in a chipper tone. "But no unauthorized personnel are allowed to touch any A.I. machines on academy grounds."
I blew on my hands, still a little stunned. "So you assault people instead?"
The drone ignored my complaint. "As for your question, I am the Order's first drone model capable of both guidance and task assistance. You may call me M.E.I. Short for Multi-functional Educational Intelligence."
"Right." I sighed. "Nice to meet you, M.E.I."
"Now, please follow me."
M.E.I. zoomed ahead, spinning slightly as if excited to show off. I followed, my eyes took in everything around me.
E.O.S. was always massive; way bigger than any of the photos online had shown. The campus was layered and sleek, with tall structures made of dark metal and glass that shimmered under the afternoon sun. Curved walkways arched across buildings, some even floating mid-air thanks to anti-grav platforms.
The whole place gave off a futuristic, almost sci-fi vibe. Like I'd walked onto the set of a space station movie.
The campus was alive with activity. Students were scattered across the grounds, some lounging in open courtyards, others walking with friends or racing to class. Above us, more drones zipped back and forth in well-organized flight paths, while flying ability users soared effortlessly across the sky, their trails of light leaving streaks of colour in the air.
We soon passed what looked like a new training area. A crowd of students grabbed my attention.
At their centre, two guys faced off. One with red glowing hair that resembled a lit candle. The other looked the exact opposite, having blue hair that almost looked like the waves of an ocean.
"Give up?" The blue haired boy asked seeming more amused than serious.
"No!" The red hair yelled before lunging forward, his fist carrying a ball of flames.
Before I could seen what happened next, M.E.I flew right in front of my face.
"Ms. Akane! Please do not fall behind!" It used it's chipped tone from before.
Disappointed, I gave the match one last glance before I continued following M.E.I into a sleek building and up to a front desk.
A woman greeted me with a tight-Iipped smile and tired eyes, handing me a small card.
"Here's your dorm room pass. Don't lose it." She said in the most passive- aggressive tone.
"Thanks..." I took the pass, following M.E.I to an elevator, then out on the seventh floor. Walking down a long hallway, we reached a door with the number "4" written in bold and gold on it.
"This will be your dorm room for the remainder of your school years." M.E.I hovered towards the centre of the room.
"Please note: you will be having a dorm partner. Yours is not here yet unfortunately."
The room had the same sleek, futuristic feel as the rest of the campus. Two beds sat across from each other; one beside a large window overlooking the academy grounds, and the other by the wall. I dropped my bags beside the window bed and tested it. Comfortable.
"Please do make yourself comfortable! Any questions?"
"Yeah, about my roommate-"
"Great! Call me when you need me!" M.E.I chipped, zooming out the room before I could finish my question.
"Multi-function Educational Intelligence it said." I sighed shaking my head.
I got up from my bed to look around the room. There was another door that led into the bathroom. Bathtub with an overhead shower. Basic toilet with a bunch of buttons. Two sinks built into the counter, along with a large rectangular mirror cross the wall. Under that was storage space.
I'm glad we had our own bathrooms in the dorms. Last year, I didn't stay in the dorms but rather went back home. The idea of sharing a room with someone other than Naniso seemed strange so i preferred that. But this year I needed to just get out of the house.
I excited the bathroom right as entrance door opened, revealing a sack of suitcases.
The stack took a few clumsy steps forward before everything crashed to the floor.
"Agh! I told her not to pack all this stuff!" the girl from behind the stack huffed. She looked up seeming to have noticed me.
"Hi there. I'm guessing you're my roommate?" I approached her to give a handshake but the closer I got, the more her frame to shrink.
She shrank down the size of a mouse, trying to use her hair to cover her face.
"Oh wow. Your ability is to shrink huh? Amazing!" I praised but she only seemed to shrink down even more.
Was I scaring her or something?
Getting the hint, I took a few steps back. "Sorry if that was a weird thing to say." I turned to pick up one of the suitcases she had dropped.
"Nice to meet you. Guess we'll be roommates from now on." I said lifting another suitcase of hers and setting it upright. "You've got a lot of stuff with you huh." I tried to joke.
I noticed her shifting back to her original size. She had long black hair that ran down to her legs. Most of her hair covered her face making it hard to make eye contact.
"Your hair is super long." I complimented, but it seemed to make her shyer as she shrank down again, this time even smaller.
"Sorry, I meant that as a compliment!" I faceplanted myself.
"...really?" I heard her ask.
"Yeah, like your hair is long and looks super healthy. I've tried growing my hair that way once, but I'd get too lazy to maintain it and just cut it right below my shoulders."
She slowing grew back to her original size. "Thank you." She said using her hair to cover her blush.
"Oh, my name's Aria. And you are?"
"...I'm Takami."
"Nice to meet you Takami."
I set the last of her suitcases up. "There all done."
I noticed a paint brush that fell out of one of her bags."Oh, do you paint?" I asked picking up the brush.
She hesitated before nodding.
"That's cool, perhaps you could show me one of your works, that is if you're comfortable with that."
I handed her the brush as I walked to my side of the room.
I heard her mutter something to me but couldn't hear. "Sorry, I didn't get that."
She mutter again but I still didn't hear what she said. "What?"
"THANK YOU FOR HELPING ME PICK UP MY BAGS!" her sudden loud volume startled me. She quickly covered her mouth looking nervous. "...sorry..."
"It's no big deal!" I laughed off the surprise.
We talked for a few minutes. (Meaning I continued asking her questions like a detective.) She was a second-year transfer and her mom happened to be spark girl.
Ami would have loved meeting her.
I shook my head at the thought.
Our conversation was cut short as M.E.I barged into the room.
"Ah! I see you've met your roommate Ms. Akane. Apologies if I am interrupting anything," he chipped not seeming apologetic at all. "Opening ceremony will begin soon and I have been tasked to come get you two. Please, follow me."
We followed after him, soon arriving at the academy's hall. Every student was already inside, separated into first years, second years and third years. At the end of the hall stood a huge stage.
M.E.I lead us to the second years sitting area. I took my sit, urging Takami to sit next to me till a familiar red head bumped into her, making Takami fall.
"Can't you see your holding up a line?" he said angrily, staring daggers at Takami.
I was about to defend her before another guy came from behind the red hair, kneeling to help Takami up. It was the same blue haired guy I saw before.
"Forgive him dear, he's just salty that he lost a match to me." He lead Takami to the sit next to mine. "How many times must I tell you, you can't take out your anger at people just because you're a bad sport."
"SHUT UP! And I did NOT LOSE, We were interrupted!" The red hair yelled.
"HEY! ENJI STOP CAUSING TROUBLE AND GET TO YOUR SEAT!" A woman yelled from afar. "KAI, GET OUT OF THE SECOND YEARS SECTION!"
"Sorry Ms." the blue haired Kai winked at us before he left the area. Enji gave Takami one last glance before walking off to his own seat.
"That jerk! Not even an apology?" I was about to go grab him by his hair and drag him back to Takami's feet and make him apologize before Takami stopped me.
"I'm fine..." she spoke so softly like she was used to such behaviour.
The hall buzzed with laughter and chatter until the lights above dimmed one by one, swallowing the noise in a soft hush. Every eye turned to the stage as Mrs. Thornfield stepped forward, her heels clicking sharply against the stage floor. She wore a pristine white coat trimmed in gold, the uniform of the Order's highest ranks and her gaze swept across the hall with quiet command.
"Welcome, students of the Eminent Order School. My name is Mrs. Thornfield, headmaster of E.O.S." Her voice was calm, but every word carried power, filling the massive hall. "Whether you are returning or joining us for the first time, you stand at the center of a legacy that began centuries ago. The legacy of those who first discovered the flowers that reshaped humanity."
A faint murmur rippled through the crowd.
"At E.O.S., we do not simply train ability users. We shape protectors; individuals who understand that strength without control is chaos, and power without purpose is destruction. The world beyond these walls is fragile, and it looks to the Order for stability."
She paused, letting her gaze linger briefly on the rows of new students.
"Some of you may think your abilities make you special. You are wrong." Her voice sharpened. "What will make you special is your discipline, your resolve, and your willingness to rise when the world demands it."
Silence fell. Even the whispering drones above seemed to pause.
Then, with a faint smile, she added, "Your journey begins today. Make it one worth remembering."
The hall erupted into applause again as the lights brightened, and the ceremony officially began.