"WELCOME!" A loud voice boomed over the clanking metal. A man stood on a podium, looking down at the teenagers who stood in an orderly manner.
They flinched, hearing the loud, unexpected voice. He was tall with a muscular frame, but a scar-filled face didn't make it any better for them.
"TODAY YOU ALL WILL JOIN ME IN HELL." The metal chains that wrapped around the teenager's ankles and wrists clank louder. They all wore similar orange jumpsuits.
Some trembled, others frowned, one scuffed. The muscular man looked over at the female, one of the few in line.
She had brown skin, with shoulder-length curly hair that blew in the wind. He frowned deeply, recognizing her.
His eyes narrowed, wishing he could freeze this moment and teach her a lesson, but he could only glare and move one… For now.
"You all are here because you are the worst of the worst." He scanned the crowd again. Once satisfied, he continued, "The hopeless, the unredeemable."
"The government didn't know what to do with you… And that's why I'm here." A cruel smile washed over his face. His eyes gleamed with insanity.
"You will all stay in my big, beautiful facility. The only way out is money." He laughed loudly.
Everyone's eyes landed on the large building behind him. Concrete walls, tall metal gates, with symbols inscribed on them, and visible weapons.
'My beautiful prison.' He thought, eyeing the building he spent years building.
He glanced over at the girl, who scuffed. She wore a bored expression. 'Don't worry, dear, I got something special for you.' The girl perked up, hearing his voice in her head.
She frowned deeply. "Stay out of my head, you old bitch."
Before he could even say anything, the gate opened. The symbols on them are glowing a bright blue. The man rolled his eyes.
A tall, dark skin woman with an hourglass figure and glazed-over eyes stood next to a small, pale-skinned ginger with freckles and light green eyes.
They stepped from behind the gate. An air of power radiated from both of them. A power that straightened the kids up.
They watched as the man and woman joined the muscular man on stage. The woman stepped forward as the other two stood on either side.
"Hello, my name is Pira, you all…" Her voice was smooth, neither a whisper nor a yell, but commanded attention. "May call me Madam Pira or just Madam."
"On my right," She gestured to the muscular man. "Is Maniac." She turned to the man to her Left. "And to my left is Ginger."
"There are more teachers inside you will get to meet in time. For now, gather in an orderly manner and head inside. Where your metal cuffs shall be removed." They watched the students line up, slowly making their way inside.
They all looked towards the back of the line. The girl with curly hair. Madam Pira's eyes flashed golden before disappearing. She frowned.
"I can't read her." She said softly. The men behind her frowned.
"What kind of concealing magic could block you like that?" Ginger eyed the girl.
"Dark magic for one," Maniac grumbled. It was the only way he knew how to whisper.
"No, it must have been her mother's doing." Their frowns deepened. She was the strongest witch they knew.
Going against the government without a hint of hesitation, yet the fear she expressed the moment she saw that girl's mother's name in her file, caused even them to react.
They didn't know why, and she didn't explain it to them. This made it even worse for them.
They watched her go inside, ignoring them.
"Good evening, student, what's your name?" A light-skinned boy, a year or two older than her, greeted her upon entering.
He adjusted his glasses before looking down at the handheld tablet.
"My name is Kira Hale." The girl looked at him closely. Her nose flared before she turned away.
"Right," he said, looking for her name in the database. "Here we are… Kira Hale admitted last minute for…" his breath hitched.
He turned and looked at the sweet girl who stood beside him. She raised her eyebrows almost amusingly. He looked at his tablet again, thinking he had read it wrong.
The girl who looked around his age. He quickly shook his head. He had to remember that all of these kids looked innocent or sweet, but all had some kind of heinous charges.
"Kira Hale admitted last minute for the killing of the Lotus pack, twenty-three kills, and the Killing of the Alpha Nest, Forty-Seven kills...." He sighed heavily, his heart racing.
"For a total of fifty kills. Your out price has been set to one billion dollars." She nodded as he talked. Everything seemed in order.
"Three billion dollars, that's not bad." He looked at her like she was a demon. The most these kids get is a few million, but a billion was absurd. Even if she did kill fifty innocent people.
"Your entry amount is $20,000." He handed her a black bank card. He decided to finish this quickly.
"If you aren't aware, you pay for everything here. From food to a room and many more." He handed her a few papers to look at. It was the things she could pay for and the prices.
"You get money by scoring well on tests, challenging your fellow students, or going outside on missions." Although she knew all this, she still listened closely.
"You will not be able to leave until you have paid your debt in full. Any questions?" He paused and looked at her. Seeing her shake her head, he quickly unchained her and walked away.
Kira looked around. They were in a large hall. Most students around were gathered in groups, talking among themselves. She shook her head. 'Dummies.'
This was not the place to make friends, especially since they would most likely be put against each other anyway. They all knew it, yet they all decided to gather up anyway.
A group of girls walked over to her. "Hi," a short girl wearing a head cover spoke. She stood with three other girls behind her.
"Go away." Kira looked anywhere but at them.
The girl pretended not to hear her. "My name is Sashi. We were wondering if you'd like to join our group." Sashi smiled politely.
"No, go away?" Kira started to walk away. Sashi's smile faltered.
She looked at Kira, confused. "Why not? I mean it would be beneficial for-"
Kira finally turned to look at her. Her cold gaze halted Sashi from continuing to speak. "If I cared about benefits, I wouldn't be here. Now go away."
"Come on, Sashi, let's just go." A girl stepped up and grabbed Sashi's arm. Sashi hesitated; she knew this place was dangerous, and people shouldn't fight alone. But Kira insisted.
She could only sigh and walk away.
Kira ignored them and went back to looking around. On the second floor, the teachers stood looking at the students as they mixed and mingled.
Ginger stood amongst them, his eyes never leaving Kira. He watched her turn and lock eyes with him. A small smile appeared on her lips. She waved softly.
"Ladies and gentlemen." They all turned to a shout. On the third floor stood a man with a black beard and a giant belly.
His voice was deep and reverberated throughout the entire place. After all eyes were on him, he continued, "You all were giving your bank cards. The next step is for you all to find your rooms."
"Settle in, explore, enjoy yourselves, cuz tomorrow you all start your official school day." The door to exit the hall opened, allowing everyone to go out.
Kira moved with the crowd to find her a room. The rooms cost about five hundred dollars for a lower-class room. It barely had a single bed inside. The higher-end rooms went upwards to five thousand. They were as big as a living room.
Theater-sized TVs, a bed that could fit five grown people in it, an unlimited snack bar, and a private gym.
Only the arrogant ones picked those rooms. One night of luxury was fine, but continued use would be horrible in the long run.
Kira picked one such room. Not out of arrogance but because she had the money to do so. People glanced her way, shaking their heads.
They had heard stories of those people; they would quickly fall and be forced to do missions night and day just to pay for the room.
"Classes run all day in every subject, from reading and math to the concept of magic and shifting introductions.
You will have to pay for classes, but it will only cost a measly 100 bucks. For food, you have to pay as low as five hundred dollars to a thousand dollars." Kira heard one of the boys who had been here the longest.
He glanced at her as she passed him. He watched her about to swipe on the most expensive room here. "Wait!" He shouted.
Kira stopped and looked at him. "Once you pick a room, you can't change it. I advise you to think about your choices carefully. That room is five thousand a night. The most you can get per mission is only about a thousand, and those are the harder ones.
Tests only give you about five hundred for meals, but the class itself costs a hundred, and that's without asking questions and the books you'll have to pay for."
As he rambled on, Kira swiped her card. The card read flashed green before an unlocking sound was heard.
An automated voice sounded. "Kira Hale has registered for room 309." Kira stared at him blankly while opening the door. She walked in slowly, her eyes never leaving him.
"You shouldn't have expected much from her; that's Kira Hale. She…." She closed the door behind her, not caring what the random boy was telling them.
She stretched lazily. It had been a long journey from the States Penitentiary. A full sixteen hours. The road was windy and bumpy, not allowing them much sleep.
She moved inside to the grand room. Clothes sat on the big bed. She turned and saw a seating area and a snack bar.
A Note hung above the bar. "All items are ten dollars," she shrugged and picked up a water and chips.
She placed the papers on the bed as she went to sit down on the couch. She sat next to two remotes. "Message chair?" She raised her eyebrows in delight.
She turned it on. "Oh," she groaned in satisfaction. She ate her chips and found a movie to watch.
After a movie, she finally got up and went to take a shower. The clothes on the bed were very basic.
White socks, Grey joggers, white t-shirts, tank tops, and white underwear. There were four pairs of everything.
Kali picked them up and moved them to a drawer. She moved to the bathroom with the clothes she picked.
"Got to pay for this as well." She looked at the card reader by the bathroom door. It was locked until she swiped her card.
She shrugged and swiped her card. The bathroom was large. A jacuzzi, two sinks, a shower, and a toilet that was in a separate space from everything else.
She took a nice hot shower before dressing. She wanted to go out and see what this place had to offer.
Moving out of the residential wing, she came across the classroom. The new kids who came with her or from another penitentiary looked inside at the classrooms already happening.
She walked further, coming across a library. It was ten dollars for every hour. She swiped her card and went inside. "Holy shit." She spoke involuntarily.
It was big, bigger than she expected. The place was as big as two football fields. Shelves lined the walls and made up the aisle.
The shelves were filled with books of all kinds. People filled the library even more than they did the classrooms.
The library was cheaper, so many chose to self-study, only going into the classroom to take tests to earn money.
She moved around the library assessing the place. People looked, but she ignored them. She moved out of the library shortly after.
She visited all the places. From the gym to the training hall. She went to the gardens and then to the forest. A barrier stopped anyone from getting out.
By the time she finished visiting everything, it had already been three hours.
She stopped in front of the Warden's room.
"How are you liking the school?" A female's voice sounded behind her. Madam Pira smiled at her.
Kira frowned slightly. "I just entered a restricted area, and you ask about how I like it and not how I got here."
Madam Pira moved to unlock her door. "Your family has been a thorn in my ass since I built this prison." She gestured for Kira to enter.
It was a minimalist off. The one thing Kira could say for sure was that Madam Kira liked wood. Everything was made of wood.
Tables, chairs, the walls, and the fireplace were lined with it.
"So you know why I'm here…" Kira took a seat at the desk in front of Madam Pira.
"No, you all have different missions. Usually, I get a courtesy call beforehand, but it seems your mom still holds a grudge." Madam Pira intertwined her fingers before resting her chin on them.
"No, she's dead," Kira said plainly. She showed no emotions as she sat back in her chair. It was more comfortable than she thought it would be.
Madam Pira sighed heavily, all too used to this family's cold-hearted nature towards each other. She didn't fault Kira; it was just the way she was taught.
"So she was serious, she really did intend to die by her own child." Madam Pira looked at her with pity. She wouldn't wish that upon anyone.
"Yes, it was…" she paused, her eyes glowing a deep red. "It was an experience to say the least."
Madam nodded, "So why are you here? I assume you finished your trials before she died."
Kira sighed, crossing her leg. "Me taking everything from her was my trial; however, I thought beating her record would be a more honorable act."
"Ah, so this is more personal." Madam Pira nodded. "If that's the case, then allow me to apologize in advance. Your goal of buying your way out before her time is going to be a hard one. She left in only two years. That's practically impossible with the inflation here."
"Two years, 347 days, and 5 hours. That's how long I have. The time started the moment I walked through the door." Kira sat up. Her face was serious.
"I don't expect help, and I'm not going to ask. You just mind your business, and I'll be out of your way by then. One way or another." Kira stood up, prepared to leave.
"Oh, and tell your boy to stop staring, it's creepy." She said this before leaving.
Madam Pira sighed heavily. "She's going to be a pain in the ass."
"What kind of mother makes their own daughter kill them?" Ginger and Maniac appeared behind Madam Pira.
They had been there the entire time. "The Hale kind. Let's just hope she's more civilized than the rest of them. Otherwise, we might need to protect the prison from being destroyed."
Maniac narrowed his eyes, "She's also lying."
"I know. Watch her." Madam Pira dismissed them.