Mirai twirls her blood red hair, wondering. The staff had sent a grade-wide email via the portal used to check grades and whatnot, saying that they had an important announcement to make in an assembly. But, first, everyone has to go to their first class. Duh. “Boo!” Cracking a grin, Mirai giggles, “You scared me.” Gerald smiles back, “Of course. It’s my job as your best friend!” He raises a pale hand to scratch the back of his not normally unruly jet black hair, dark brown eyes glinting with mischief. Mirai narrows her own hot pink eyes at her best (and only!) friend, “What’s up with your hair? You’re never that messy.” “Oh, that… Yeah… I ran late,” There is no way she’s believing that terrible excuse, but, whatever. Who doesn’t run late occasionally? Shrugging off any concern, the red-head changes the conversation, “Did you take a look at that email?” “What email?” DIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNGGG!!! That’s the bell… “All right kids, that was the bell. Settle down,” Mr. McCarthy grunts, sighing in long-term-sub. After taking attendance, which took a hot minute because he’s old (I didn’t say that!), Mr. McCarthy starts, “As most of you know, if you checked your email, or Synergy, there’s an assembly in the gym for all of eight grade,” – “Hey, that’s us,” George hollers – “and I have no idea what it’s about, George,” the teacher finishes, not bothering to cover up with a cough. “Speaking about assemblies,” someone perks up, “shouldn’t we be heading there now?” “Good point,” Mr. McCarthy concurrs, “everyone, leave your things here, you’ll be able to pick them up later.” The classroom gets up and sorta lines up in a sorta single file line? Ehh… it doesn’t really matter as everyone is gonna get mixed up anyways. The old substitute leads the class into the building (their classroom was an outdoor one), out of the building, and into the quite long corridor, which, on the opposite end, was the gym. The multi-purpose room - the MPR - is typically used for plain grade-wise assemblies (the gym is only used for school-wide assemblies and P.E.). The eighth graders shuffle into the bleachers, while the teachers stand to the side as the councillors, vice-principals, and principal stand in the middle. The leadership kids, wearing their leadership shirts (in the school’s colors, red, white, and black), are looking equally as confused as the rest of the lot. Gerald juts his elbow into Mirai’s ribcage, muttering, “Why is leadership confused,” Mirai just sits there, dumbfounded, “I have no idea, but it must be serious if even leadership is just as confused the rest of us,” “All right,” everyone winces at the microphone feedback as Principal Lopez adjusts it, “y’all are probably curious as to why you are here, and I’m not blaming you. Not even the staff knows, except for your councilors, vice-principals, and I. “Every student has gone through this before. And, while I understand that it’s still the first semester and you guys have only been eighth graders for three months. However, this is one of the most important things, if not the most important, thing you will go through in your life as it will decide your future. “If you don’t get accepted into this program, which the mass majority of you will not, you’ll go to live an ordinary life among the rest of humankind. For the rare handful of you who do get selected, you’ll be given high-position, clearance-only, government jobs when you graduate, working and living among the elite. “Now, something important. In order to prepare for this event, you’ll be staying in your first class of the day until Calling, this event that will decide whether or not you will be accepted into the program. “What is this ‘Calling’ you may ask? Well, it is a test that will connect you with one of the elements you are familiar with: Fire; Ice; Air; Earth; Foliage; Animal; Electricity; Water; Shadow; Starlight; Psychic; Magic; Love; Knowledge; Time; Space; Life; Death; Poison; and Metal. Not many elemental users are known to the public due to being very secretive and even we don’t know how it works because, if you don’t connect, your memories of the event are wiped.
“The program will train all of those selected across the multiverse. Again, we don’t know how this will work, but you are expected to follow the intergalactic customs that are laid out for you. “Thank you. That is all.” ✵ ✵ ✵ Mirai collapses onto the couch in Gerald’s living room (thank the stars for that minimum day!), wiping the imaginary sweat off her pale forehead, “What the heck is this quote-unquote ‘Calling’ thing supposed to be anyway?” “Honestly, no idea,” Gerald frowns deeply, staring into the ceiling. “Hey, kids, how was school?” Katy, Gerald’s mom, a pretty Asian woman (Taiwanese, Mirai thinks), asks. Neither Gerald nor Mirai knows her friend’s dead-beat dad as he - and by that, I mean, Gerald - was the product of a one-night stand. “Urgh!!! They’re doing this Calling thing on the first of June and we have NO. IDEA. WHAT. IT. IS.” “Ever the dramatics, you two,” Katy rolls her eyes, “just search it up online.” “Yeah, right, mom, like that solves everything,” Gerald scoffs teasingly, smirking and rolling his eyes. “Come on Ger,” Mirai lightly punches him on the arm, “I believe in you, Aunt Katy. Him, not so much.” Gerald blows a raspberry at the girl while his mother just chuckles. Katy exits the living room temporarily before coming back with her laptop, which she promptly thrusts open, opening a tab to search something up. She types some more stuff before sitting there, dumbfounded, “Okay, I searched it up on Google, Safari, and Yahoo, but nothing popped up…” “Are you serious?” Gerald questions, his voice filled with doubt and skepticism, before pulling out his phone and typing away. His eyes widened with shock, “She’s not kidding…” Frustrated, Mirai snatches his phone, staring at the “nothing matched what you searched” screen. Thrusting the phone back to its original owner, she sounds kinda cross as she says, “I need to go home now. My parents are probably worried about me.”
