THE MOMENT
"Where's the rest of it?" Oz asked. He thought he was used to Traversing between Earths; but, as he stepped out of the portal he found himself surprised again. Despite all their surface differences, all the other Earths he had been to were pretty much the same. They all had a sky and ground to stand on. And, no matter where he landed, he could see the terrain for miles.
But, this Earth was different. He studied the few buildings he could see. A warehouse-sized three story building sat on the grass some distance ahead of the group. Oz got the impression the building was made mostly of glass, but it was hard to tell. Hundreds of what he assumed were windows reflected the empty, white sky.
Sidewalks through the lush grass connected the glass building to more than a dozen satellite buildings behind it; but, that was all there was. The grass only extended so far; then, the ground ended and gave way to white nothing.
"I guess it's still being worked on?" Astra shrugged and led Barley, Oz, and Ruin towards the main building.
"Worked on?" Oz asked.
"This is an AlterNet server; the owner's probably still customizing it," she said.
"You don't know who owns it? Why are we here?" Oz asked. Astra shrugged as they reached the main door.
"Aury suggested it," she said. The main entrance was guarded by large glass doors and reinforced with black metal. Text on the glass read: 'Nexus Academy' in golden letters. Astra yanked on the door but it did not budge. Then, a face suddenly appeared on the glass pane.
It was a lean, blonde, bearded man. His greying hair was parted neatly in the center, but it was bushy enough to flow into golden mutton chops. Taken in with his somewhat sunken eyes and beard, Oz wondered if the man was half-lion somehow. He'd seen stranger things in the multiverse. Oz was glad when Astra and Barley recognized him immediately.
"REGAL!" Both girls chirped with excitement. He smiled at them,
"Astra, Barley, I'm glad you came. Stay there, I'll be right over," he said. Then, he disappeared leaving only the text on the glass
"Who's Regal?" Oz asked.
"He made the bet with Ballisea; it's why she can't kill," Astra replied. Oz tilted his head at her.
"You said Aury was the reason Ballisea couldn't kill?" He asked. Astra nodded.
"Yeah, he's the reason SoundCrowd won; but, Regal is one who made the bet. It was his idea."
"That's not exactly true," Regal said from behind them. "I hope you don't mind meeting outside, the school isn't quite open yet," he said.
"No way!" Astra dashed through Oz and Ruin to shake Regal's hand, and Barley was close behind her.
"What do you mean that 's not true?" Oz asked. He was surprised to note that even Ruin seemed somewhat star struck. The tall bald man moved closer to him and Oz decided to join the rest of the group.
"The bet was Mrs. Sharp's idea," Regal said. "But she let me take credit for it to intrigue Ballisea even more."
"This is a school?" Barley asked. Regal nodded at her.
"Speaking of the bet...," Regal looked at each of them carefully, then nodded. "What do you know of it?" he asked. Astra shrugged.
"Only that Ballisea can't kill for a year. But that's it," she said. Regal nodded.
"If SoundCrowd defeated the Conquistadors..," Regal began to explain. But, he was interrupted by Barley.
"Oh boy, did they!" she giggled.
"It was quite a game," Regal smiled at her. "However, the terms were if SoundCrowd wins, Ballisea would not take any life for one year. After one year, she's entitled to a rematch...," As Regal spoke, Oz noticed Astra's complexion pale when Regal mentioned a rematch. "...if she loses that game, she spends another year not killing anyone. If she chooses not to rematch, she cannot take life until she wins a game. But, she can attempt a rematch every year she loses."
"The Conquistadors are.... alive?" Astra asked. Regal shook his head and placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Not at all. Which brings us here to the Nexus Academy," Regal gestured at the glass building. "According to the terms, neither Ballisea nor I may use the same team for our rematch. Since we were going to be cultivating new teams, Mrs. Sharp suggested that both teams get the same training environment as much as possible."
"So.. it's a derby academy?" Ruin asked. Regal shook his head.
"AlterNet Derby will be an important extra-curricular activity; but opening a school for Uniques has long been a dream of mine. When Mrs. Sharp made her suggestion, I managed to get some extras to help me fulfill that dream. Ballisea and I will each choose six school-age Uniques and send both teams to the same school. They will have the same opportunities for training and friends."
"You want me on your team?!" Astra asked with wide eyes. Regal shook his head.
"I've seen you play; you're too good," he said. "And, since you're so talented, I'd like you to attend the Nexus Academy this Fall. The more students like you I have around, the better my team will be. Ballisea's too; but, that's the game," Regal chuckled.
"YES!" Astra screeched. Regal smiled at her.
"Wonderful. I'll make sure you're informed when classes start," he said. "It should be early next month."