Chapter 1: Stonewall Academy
The sun was setting on a wonderful day in the bustling city of New Gabe, the idle chatter of men and women going home from their daily commute to work. The noisy atmosphere brought about by the large number of cars stuck in traffic. Street vendors shouted to grab the attention of the commuters in hopes of attracting buyers for their wares before they had to pack up their supplies and head to their respective abodes.
The city was completing another day and for some, it had brought opportunities and excitement, for others it had brought monotony and boredom, but for a select few, this day would bring nothing but despair and agitation.
In the heart of the city, there lay a school. Built on a ten-acre plot of land, this school served as the training grounds for the future protectors of the earth. It possessed the best facilities for training known to the common man, second only to the United Federation's Military. This school had been built as a place where the students within its halls could practice and hone their abilities, its methods had worked so well, that they produced the world's most powerful heroes known to man. Stonewall Academy, was at the top of its class in almost every aspect and it wasn't even close, so it is unsurprising that its entrance exam was quite popular among the youth, which is exactly the scene, that is taking place at this current point in time.
A long line stretched from deep within the halls of the school, all the way toward the end of the next street over. A multitude of faces and voices could be seen and heard as teenagers all stood in line to be tested on what abilities they might possess and if they qualified to even be admitted into Stonewall. The line had been formed in the early hours of the morning and had just kept expanding with a nonstop vigor as the teens each stood in line. A palpable sense of excitement filled the atmosphere in the first couple of hours as the young children stood in line, each one of them filled with curiosity and anxiety about the wonderful abilities they would come to possess and showcase in the very near future.
It had been within the third hour of waiting for the earliest student when the school opened its doors and heralded the arrival of the school officials. A group of men and women in a set of green and yellow robes walked out of the building. Each of them, with no exception among their number, exuded an air of authority and might the students hadn't seen among civilians of any kind. It simply wasn't something a civilian should exude, the confidence in one's ability to face any threat that might come their way. Although they carried themselves casually, it was obvious to an experienced eye that they were anything but relaxed. Their eyes shifted from person to person in search of any miscreant who would come up with any funny ideas. The official up front simply made a hand gesture and the ten officials dispersed and appeared at different points in the winding line that had grown to terrifying lengths, covering over ten kilometers across the city, and this was just the early risers, there was no doubt more would be coming that afternoon.
It was within this line, that a boy with dark brown eyes, black hair, and a complexion to match his copper-brown eyes stood to wait his turn as the sun was slowly descending over the horizon. His baggy jeans and open jacket combo, fluttered in the wind to reveal a red plain T-shirt but he paid them no attention. Ethan simply stared at the large wall of Stonewall, excitement and ambition welling in his heart. He was just one step away from entering his dream school and about to take a step forward in achieving his dream of becoming a superhero. Although there would be tons of people vying for the same admission and dream as him, he would simply have to stand out and show that he was different from the rest of them. This young boy was Ethan Blake and he was about to enter Stonewall Academy. The Sanctuary of Heroes.