1 The End and the Beginning

The once lively stronghold seemed to be blotted black by the swarm of creatures that stretched endlessly towards the horizon. Patches of red can be seen in this black canvas, denoting the last struggle of the heroes who fought bravely against these monstrosities. Backed by the crimson red setting sun, it seemed to mark the end of humanity's struggle for survival.

Within this black canvas, stands a lone man still struggling against these creatures.

"Comrades! Shall we meet again in the afterlife!" Percy shouted as he raises his sword in the air and charges towards the swarm of creatures.

Percy slashed cleanly through every creature that met his sword's trajectory, splitting their bodies into halves while the blood of these creatures stained Percy and the ground he stood on. However, with every creature slain, Percy felt his energy draining as he found it harder and harder to raise his sword.

Despite Percy's fierce attacks, the swarm is never-ending, when one falls, another takes its place immediately. Eventually, his arms stopped listening to his command, as they slumped lifelessly beside Percy, releasing his grip on his sword.

"Guess this is the end of the line… System, execute the 'Another' program…" Percy uttered, as a pulsing light starts to glow from Percy's chest, getting stronger with each pulse. While Percy shuts his eyes as the creatures knocked him off his feet.

"URGH!" Percy jumped out from his bed, landing on his feet by the bedside standing alert in a defensive boxing posture. "Not this nightmare again…"

Percy relaxed after noticing his homely but messy room and ruffled his messy hair before proceeding to dress himself up in a simple pair of dark blue jeans and a white tee. His muscular physique can be seen through his simple attire as he tidied himself in the mirror.

"Come and get your breakfast! You have a long day ahead of you!" a muffled voice called from the other side of the door.

Upon hearing the call to meal, Percy exits his room and headed towards the living room where the aroma of eggs and sausages seemed to drift from.

"Bro, you didn't need to trouble yourself, I could have bought my meal at the convenience store," Percy said as he rubs the sleep from his eyes.

"Sheesh, today is your enrollment day! It will be two weeks before you can come home again, who knows whether the academy will even feed you right!" Lucian complained as he wheeled his wheelchair from the kitchen while a plate of eggs and sausages laid on his lap.

Percy helped his brother set the table and begin chowing down his meal.

While the brothers are sharing the meal, Percy observed his older brother's frail physique and pale complexion and questioned, "Will you be alright alone?"

"Hah, will I be alright alone? You better worry about yourself first! You can't even cook an edible meal on your own!" Lucian mocked in between bites of his meal. "I'm sure your comrades in the academy will enjoy your field cooking and beat you for attempted murder! Hahahaha!"

"Alright, alright stop mocking me." Percy conceded as he took his last bite and grabbed his backpack that is on the sofa. "I will be going now, take care bro, do call our neighbour for help if you need it."

"Okay, stop worrying about me and go! Work hard and take care!" Lucian encouraged as Percy opened the front door and left the apartment.

Percy walked towards the bus stop that was a short distance away from his apartment and boarded a bus bound for the Arsenal Youth Military Academy. The military academy that every 18 years old regardless of gender in Arsenal Stronghold are required to attend.

As the bus starts accelerating, a girl chased after the bus with speed comparable to a cheetah while streaks of electricity can be seen flowing off her figure and shouted, "Wait! Wait for me!" the bus captain noticed and stopped the bus.

"Phew, I made it! I should have slept earlier yesterday; thank you, bus captain!" Charlotte thanked as she tries to catch her breath, while the bus resumed its journey.

Percy noticed this lively girl who dons a twin tail hairdo with a fiery red hair, her large backpack that is almost as large as her entire being seems to suggest her great strength despite her petite height. This lively girl is Charlotte Ashland, his neighbour and childhood friend.

"Hey, Percy! You could have called for me! I almost missed the bus!" Charlotte complained as she walked towards Percy and took a seat beside Percy.

"It's your fault for sleeping late and Charlotte, you have super speed and somehow you are always late…" Percy smirked. "If you are one of those legendary dual superpower holders, I'm sure what you possess is super tardiness, hahaha!"

"Urgh… You live just right next door! It is hardly an inconvenience for you to knock on my door on your way out!" Charlotte rebutted as she rummages through her backpack, seemingly to check that everything is in order.

Peeking into her backpack, Percy noticed a lot of manga books. "You sure you can bring those mangas in? We are going into a military academy... not a chalet." Percy reprimanded.

"Hah, it will be fine, there are some perks for those who are natural you know?" Charlotte explained as she seemed satisfied with her exploration of her backpack and left it aside.

"Speaking of superpower, you must be looking forward to the admission ceremony, right?" Charlotte questioned, "I heard the admission ceremony will help people unlock their powers through some high-tech mumbo jumbo."

"Yeah, I look forward to it, I'm not a natural so this ceremony will probably dictate my future achievements in the military!" Percy sighed as he looks out the window of the moving vehicle with a melancholic gaze.

Percy thought inwardly that to cure his brother's illness, he will require tons of merits to redeem medicine from the Arsenal Military Force, and the only way to earn merits is to perform well as a soldier of Arsenal Stronghold, contributing to the safety of the stronghold.

And to do that, he must unlock a superpower of combative nature during the ceremony. As this is the golden age of superpowers, without a decent power of his own, he will find it extremely hard to achieve his goals!

The pair resumed the reminder of the journey in silence as a solemn mood surround and blanketed Percy. As the bus travelled from stop to stop, it is gradually filled with other youths bound for military academy enrollment.

Half an hour later. "Ding Dong, Arsenal Youth Military Academy. Arsenal Youth Military Academy" a pre-recorded female voice chimed from the bus speakers.

The passengers from the packed bus streamed out from the bus, as the crowd subside, Percy and Charlotte alighted from the bus as well.

In front of the pair, is a towering regal gate with the words Arsenal Youth Military Academy written in a calligraphic style carved into the stone walls beside the gate. Beyond the gate, is a square where many youths have gathered. The square is connected to a seemingly endless stairway, leading towards a majestic, tall modern building which seemed to pierce the sky. This building is where the youths will spend the next 6 months of training to become a soldier.

"Wow, the academy is even more impressive in person than the pictures and videos seemed to suggest!" Charlotte exclaimed as she fidgets excitedly while moving with the crowd towards the square pass the gate with Percy flanking her.

Amongst the crowd of youths, Percy wondered what mysterious and wonderous superpower each of these youth hold. And amongst them, will any standout and become a great hero of Arsenal Stronghold and will he be able to count himself as one of these heroes.

When Percy and Charlotte arrived at the square, a stoic bearded middle-aged man dressed in military combat outfit stood on a raised podium. His sharp gaze scanned through the rowdy crowd like an eagle, seemingly taking stock of his prey.

The youths avoided his gaze when his fierce eyes landed on them, taming the rowdy crowd. However, when this middle-aged man locked eye contact with Percy, Percy stood his ground, unwilling to back down. The middle-aged man smirked before moving on to address the rest of the crowd.

"Attention!" the stoic middle-aged man demanded as he clasped his hand behind his back and a translucent image of a lion roared behind him, grabbing the attention of every youth in the square if he hasn't already, "I am Warrant Officer Leo Normandy, and you fellas will address me as Sir. I can see you fellas lack discipline, but don't worry, I will personally grind you fellas down to become fierce soldiers of the Arsenal Stronghold!"

At this moment Leo signalled at another soldier that is near a mechanic contraption with a lever beside the stairway, the soldier pulled the lever and a click sound resounded throughout the square. Gears can be heard spinning as the stairway toward the academy starts to glow and a mist starts to fog up the stairway, creating a celestial view akin to the heavenly palace of the myths.

Leo signalled towards the stairway and said, "This is the admission ceremony, the dense spiritual energy on the stairway will temper you, allowing you to improve your superpower or unlock it. However, how much you gain will depend on yourselves, the further you climb, the more you stand to gain. You may begin your climb now; I hope to see some winners in this batch of recruits."