Started around 2020-10-21, now revisited and modified in 2022-06-06. Then dormant until some slight changes on 2023-02-13.
This is from the POV of the MC from an alternate timeline, from a different 2020, a Harvard undergraduate.
Currently Chapter 1 (after the prologue/chapter 1 from like 5 years ago now, so chapter 2).
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It is all the same.
The planet harbored him.
It was dark, unlit. Aside from the lamp atop his table.
He had not spent the last four years of undergrad for nothing. Here he was, educated at the best engineering university across the river, molded by the pinnacle of all liberal arts learning. Shrooms of fumes spored avant him. En la tune avec de la vie, ecrit.
Would this take me really to the past, the present, the future.
Many have labored, but sheer pursuit had produced nothing to refute. Back, before it all began.
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Araw de Taha walked along the halls. There were no yellow zinc lozenges around, but honey diamonds of a dynasty flared like a shrill. The coat of arms of de Trabasabe. His screen said so.
Name: Escudo de armas, de Trabasabe
Description: The noble family of Trabasabe originated from a line of indentured servants in eleventh century Andalusia. They were a mishmash of Jewish, Catholic, and Muslim pairings, the norm of the time. At the border, they were able to hedge themselves into Cordoba’s scholar stratum using well-timed marriages and business ventures. The Trabasabe remained lower gentry until the twentieth century, when the King of Hispania promoted technological advancement with unmet zeal. Since then they’ve managed to parlay their direct royal promotions into a conglomeration of renowned modern educational institutions.
It was the first day.
“Please move,” a soft voice said. It was the lightest command he’d heard in a while, but her skin was murkier.
Name: Kat Galisia Ipunan - Ipunan Tribe - Ipunan Clan - Hispania
Birthplace: Centrum - Centrum - Imperial Hospital, Centrum, Centrum Megalopolis, Centrum, Hispania
Birthdate: 1998 - 1998 - 1998
Age: 17 - 17 - 17
Sex: Female
Ethnicity: Hispanian, Asturias Novan - Hispanian - Hispanian
Religion: Roman Catholic - Roman Catholic - No Religion
Education: Primeria Burges de Centrum - Ateneo de Centrum - Not Applicable
Wealth: $0 - $10 000 - $1 000
Beauty: 8/10 - 9.5/10 - 8/10
Intelligence: 8/10 - 10/10 - 8/10
Loyalty: Hispania - Hispania - Hispania
Her dark brown hair was in a top knot bun, but it wasn’t really apparent due to the way she dressed: a thick sweater half gray and half black, and a similarly bulky sweatpants, full-on anemic dark gray, graphite. Much like the emotion written on her face. She had round circle eyeglasses that would’ve been normal in Asturias Nova or some other Asian part of the empire. Her bag was a satchel, outdated full-grain leather.
She was a patina. A shadow of what was lost.
“Sorry,” he muttered, but she’d already trudged past. “Okay then, could’ve augured that.”
Islington Station no more, it’s now Kipling Station as the bus hub for all transfers. What do I do, in this rude yard of kids? This is an imperialist land. He sighed. “God.”
He was assailed by the bell tone over the PA system. “Good morning, ADC, we’re carriers of our laned futures, so let’s give the freshmen a break. Seniors, it’s your last year, y’already know applications must be handed in by December, right?” a sing-songy voice said.
He was about to wonder who it could be when the door to his left burst open. It was mahogany, like most. “Damn it Mister Pascual, it isn’t Easter yet, I don’t know why you’re asking me to train a new emcee when I have to prepare for my uni applications.”
Before a reply could be heard, some dude walked out of the newly opened door. Then, an even more frat boy-looking dude appeared. At first he looked as if he was about to call after the student, but he rolled his eyes and kissed his teeth instead before closing the door again.
Great, this whole thing is straight out of a romcom teen movie. With all the “move please” and the soliloquies. Wait a minute, isn’t this—
“Fuck!” somebody yelled. Araw hadn’t even gotten a step past the first cardinal junction and things were already dire.
Before another trope could form in front of him, he hurried into his classroom. Room 101. It was empty, save for a corner occupied by what seemed to be the popular girls.
They had navy blue socks that reached up to their knees and a style of make up that bordered on being nonexistent. Their chosen fashion senses distinguished them enough from the rest of the female student body. In fact, it was so stark and subtle at the same time that he took a second to take it all in.
The one in the center of five paid a glance at him while the others crosstalked each other. He felt a momentary zap when her hazel eyes browned him. It only took a dismissing second but it always felt the same.
Why do I always play this look when it always elicits such a response.
His bag was black and empty, save for a mechanical pencil and plastic foam eraser. It was made out of nylon, its maker’s branding barely etched on the water bottle side. Plastic proof.
He took the opposite corner, closest to the teacher’s desk, and sat down. He didn’t want to be near the door or the girls. They seemed like the skeezy type. And the window corner across the girls, usually reserved for the newly transferred spotlight takers? It was within spitting distance of the girls. He was at the farthest corner, where the gum wouldn’t be blown. Which is all sorts of things, but one of the girls had already gobsmacked him with the amount of noise she made by just chewing.
ASMR is not it during such a situation. Mukbangs all day, I’ve forgotten. But that’s only if there isn’t some hollering.
It was five minutes before another person entered the classroom. He had closed the door and somewhat regretted it.
“Did you hear about Katie gunning for Billy?”
“Ya, isn’t she just some craftsman daughter, why is she trying for him?”
“He’s bald and has bunny teeth, imagine if he was us.”
“Nobility though, that’s what she wants.”
“Wait, did you hear about the new shopping center they’re building at Loyola Road?”
“My father’s actually the contractor for that one.”
“Are they adding a new haute couture outlet there, we need one so bad.”
“Yup, it takes too long to get to get to Estranza.”
“Well, he said it’s mainly for basic groceries and the like, something about us needing to finally have a mixed mall.”
“What does that even mean?”
“Do we need to shop with them?”
He could almost feel a finger at his back.
“No, no it’s apparently going to be a mishmash of supplies from all continents.”
“Oh wow.”
“So they’re definitely adding haute couture retailers there right.”
“Probably, they’re just making the spaces for the shops now though.”
“Have you seen the plans?”
“No, you know how it is, even if I’m following him in the industry, they always keep it secret.”
“Why do they need to have it so secret though, it’s just a mall.”
“Well, my father did say that they’re building tunnels for pedestrians though.”
“And that has to be secret?”
“Yeah, until the skyscrapers are built and flood the capacity.”
“What does that even mean?”
“That’s exactly what I said, and he said that they’re poised to gentrify the ghettos soon.”
“By making underground camps?”
“No, it’s just foot traffic during peak times and some small-spaced retailers as they’re obviously not going to build a huge area underneath us.”
“Ya, we’re not a new city, it’s going to take decades for them to bore.”
“Are you guys never tired of architectural stuff, why don’t you guys follow us, be a real girl.”
“What, we’re not having this convo again.”
“Okay, okay, I just wish I had the same liberties as you guys.”
“Don’t worry, times are changing.”
What is this exposition, if I was any closer I’d probably hear them gossip about their whole life.
When he was about to tune out, some girl opened the door and sat in front of him.
Name: Plasentia Mareba - Mareba Tribe - Mareba Clan - Hispania
Birthplace: Centrum - Centrum - Imperial Hospital, Centrum, Centrum Megalopolis, Centrum, Hispania
Birthdate: 1994 - 1998 - 1994
Age: 23- 17 - 23
Sex: Female
Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.
Ethnicity: Hispanian - Hispanian - Hispanian
Religion: Roman Catholic - No Religion - No Religion
Education: Primeria Burges de Centrum - Ateneo de Centrum - Universidad de Loyola
Wealth: $50 000 - $50 000 - $100 000
Beauty: 7/10 - 8.5/10 - 8/10
Intelligence: 7/10 - 10/10 - 8/10
Loyalty: Hispania - Hispania - Hispania
Her brown eyes shook him. She exaggerated her eyes—widened them as to bring her eyebrows to a crest.
“You look weird.”
Her voice was unexpectedly low. An alto. He was expecting a staccato but they blurred, the words.
Maybe it was because he had set his left ear on his left arm. He had crossed his arms to momentarily zone out. When she had come in, he subconsciously followed her movement, not realizing she would sit in front of him. Sometimes people look weird when their ear is stuck to their head.
He didn’t give her a reaction though. Even though she had drooped down.
“React weird too,” she continued.
Then she opened one of her drawers and started changing right there. The other girls in the room stopped talking when she had entered and closed the door. He felt suffocated, and so he turned his head to the left, the window.
“Huh,” he heard her mutter.
She was done in under a minute. Nobody said a thing. Her clothes had changed from the female student uniform to that more akin of a teacher’s. He figured that was the case.
He took a deep sigh. This is just odd. His eyes closed, unveiling maroon. Sometimes when light bears, it is better for red to cover. The thin membrane.
“Is she really wearing that type of bra?”
“Has she got no shame?”
“How can he ignore her like that.”
The girl dressed as a teacher fake-cleared her throat. “Guys, you know this room is only soundproofed to the walls, right? Everything inside here then is somewhat amplified.”
They had stopped then, for a good five minutes, seeing as the supposed teacher did not stop arranging her desk as she warned them. Then they resumed back to frivolous topics.
“Girls, am I right?” he heard a voice say right on his left ear. It was more sultry, electric than before. Yet there was no polarization occurring. It was already inert, always has been.
Why the hell am I targeted by this person, how even.
He didn’t bother opening his eyes.
“There’s something about you,” the teacher stated, this time he felt the air from her nostrils whirl down his ear canals. “You’d saved her, but not him.”
His left eye opened. He saw her smirk. She had squatted right in front of him.
Fucking really?
Her contacts fit well inside the non-graded frames. It pushed that oomph, the image of a conservative nerdy teacher. Whereas before her cardigan followed the shape of her torso, now her baggy sweater hid everything. It was blazoned with the crest of the University of Loyola. A wooden pencil half-covered in mud. Her skirt was replaced by black denim. Also loose instead of form-fitting. He almost said something before the next student barged in as loud as they can.
“Yo, what’s good,” a shrilly voice said. “Oh sorry, I thought there were more people here already.”
He didn’t bother turning his head.
It was an awkward minute as the door was not closed, it was half-opened. And his new classmate was probably shocked at the sight of him and the teacher. Just two people staring each other down, one with a smile, the other not. The new arrival walked all the way back, diagonal to the door, clear view of the odd situation. Where the main character would have sat.
The right muddy eye twitched as her smile broadened. “Welp, I tried my best to get a reaction from you, but what else would I have expected.”
She stood up and pointed behind him. “You, what’s your name?”
“Kurisuhit,” came the reply.
“Why didn’t you close the door?”
“Uh, and who are you?”
The comfy girl just scoffed, turned to look down at Araw, and then slowly walked to the door. After she had closed the door of shambles, she sat on the desk to his right, her eyes locking onto his. He decided to entertain her as he could feel the rays on her back. The other students were perplexed.
This is some next-level plot.
She didn’t seem to need as much work to prepare. After her desk, he thought about what else she could do.
She’d probably arranged the class the day or week before.
So it did not phase him as she maintained her stare at him. She’d mirrored him and from the periphery it probably looked like two students just sleeping and that they somehow happened to face each other. The other six in the room went silent the moment she’d asked for the new entrant’s name. After a while there was some page-flipping but no dialogue broached the air.
It wasn’t an awkward air, per se. More like an uncertain one. One where one knows not to tamper with.
He sighed inward.
Is it going to be like this. How is this even a thing.
Four minutes went by slowly. Time passed faster when the next set arrived.
It was a mixed group this time. Two boys and two girls. They spoke in soft voices and carried their textbooks against their chest. They gravitated to where the previous newcomer was.
“Hey guys, over here!”
“What’s good, you had a nice break?”
“Ya, how about you.”
It was natural then that the other pentagon would resume. He tuned it out.
Their staredown continued, but the time before class didn’t. And so capitalism was born. Counting heads was a huge part of it.
Twenty minutes, before the bell rang over the PA system. “ADC, good morning. Please listen to the national anthem.”
Standing and pledging to a flag would’ve been the norm. But there were only emblems here.
Two minutes passed. “First, we’d like to thank our Lord Jesus Christ for giving us this day. Second, remember that you can still change your courses by the end of this week. Third, we’re having an assembly before the last period today. Thank you.”
A solid minute passed. The class was in constant conversation by then, most didn’t even stop for the chanting.
Araw’s opponent had yawned and closed her eyes. It was longer than a blink. Then she turned around and tilted her chin up.
It was Kat Galisia Ipunan. Her left index finger had been poking the non-conforming girl’s right shoulder. He was surprised that Kat kept it up the whole time, the intermittent back and forth poking without uttering a word. But he was even more surprised that her target didn’t acknowledge the presence. It was a minuscule amount of amazement and when she kept staring at him while ignoring the odd pokes by Kat, it made him wonder for a bit.
Had she really seen?
She stood up and walked back to her actual desk. The rest of the class were too enmeshed in their own scenes. Kat sat down the vacated seat and opened her notebook. He turned back to the window. It was another five minutes before things changed.
Some had noticed that somebody now sat on the teacher’s desk. Others had done the same as him and zoned out. Somebody opened a bag of potato chips. A water bottle spilled a bit on a desk. Cases of pencils fell on the floor. A sniffle here and there. Sighs are all around.
Ah, the beginning of fall. The chickadees and bluejays with their pronounced calls. Not to mention the lark buntings, froggy mechanical passeris. Perched, for the songbird territorial airs.
She shook her marker before its black ink pressed against the whiteboard. “Missus Mareba, University of Loyola, PhD.”
The teacher cleared her throat for attention. It stopped a bit of the conversations. She did it for the second time, with more gust. “Now that I’ve got your attention, welcome to your last year guys. It’s going to be hard or easy, but time is always here.”
Mutterings began again, as if they couldn’t be heard outside of their intended destination.
“Wait, she’s our teacher?”
“Fucking nerd.”
“Do you know her, doesn’t she seem weird?”
“Haven’t seen her before, how come she’s like our age.”
“She has an accent.”
“I’m going to pass.”
“When’s next class again?”
“Wish we had a different teacher.”
“This seems like it’s gonna be boring.”
“Miss, are you new?”
Someone had asked the obvious question. She nodded. “Yep, and we also got a few transfer students in here with me, so why don’t we have everyone introduce themselves?”
There was a pause.
Somebody at the back of the room complained, “But Miss, it’s the end of our school life already, why do we need to start again?”
Missus Mareba murmured. It was short, a bit imperceptible, but she’d glanced at Araw. “You guys are going to do it anyway next year if you go to university. I doubt even one person here is heading straight to work. We’re at the top, after all.”
Half the class groaned. Her right index finger settled at the center of her glasses. It pushed up the frames closer to her eyes instead of remaining drooped down after she shook her head down.
“We’ll start here by the person at the door and boustrophedon our way to this one right here.”
She had pointed at him and he’d felt it. He did not turn around though as the sight of something troubling beyond the window occupied his thoughts.
It was somebody descending down from a helicopter. The rotor blades were muffled, partly due to the distance but mainly due to its material. Military grade. Good enough for the military. But it was sheathed in something unusual that made it more than just meeting the often misattributed quality standard.
The new teacher took her wheeled chair to where the front of her desk met the white walls: to his top left, directly to the right side of his vision. The windows faced north.
“Kurene,” she mumbled after sitting down.
He sighed. “Huh.”
She had a white plastic-covered notebook in front of her, about A5-sized. Her metallic silver mechanical pencil was waiting for the first inscription.
“So first girl, move the lectern to the center and start.”
The first introduction was of a clear image. She had your standard black hair, standard fair skin, standard makeup, standard uniform. As average as it could get.
“Hi everyone, my name is—”
He filtered time until it got to the back of her column.
It was the first of the hazel. The first with minimum makeup and knee-high navy blue socks. “Hey, my name’s Virdesena, I run for our track team and I’m looking forward to take the win this year.”
He zoned out again until it came to the twelfth person, the first of the remaining two at the front that he did not know. Or bothered to know. This was because he was the only male aside from Araw that sat in the first two rows from the whiteboard.
Virdesena had walked with a bit of subdued confidence. In comparison, Araw’s next person of interest shuffled as shyly as a rabbit unburrowing itself after sleep or successful escape. He had a navy blue cardigan that was too baggy for his frame but a leather-belted tapered navy blue chino. The latter was not an option.
“He-He-Hello everyone, I’m Ern. I just transfered in from abroad, please take care of me.”
The ninety degree bow was unexpected. Some ejected out quick exhales through their teeth while others kissed it with their tongue.
“Sheesh, is he really going to introduce himself in the Jipenkugo way?”
“Totally unnecessary when it’s just us two that can recognize that.”
“That guy seems to be nervous as hell.”
“He’s brave for sitting at the front though, but that’s expected due to his whole look.”
“Do we have another nerd in this class.”
“What do you mean, of course there’s gonna be another one, we’re not Primeria Elite.”
Araw’s tongue tapped his teeth as Ern held his bow. A dental fricative was trying to be consonorous to the disapproval.
Why’d he make himself stand out so much, hmm.
He decided to sieve again, to the last of Virdesena’s group and the center column’s last desk.
She walked to the stage like a burned out star. Her whole look was gray. From the clothes to the facial expression.
“I’m from Jerusalem and my name’s Istar.”
Name: Ester Kohen Iveria - Iveria Tribe - Iveria Clan - Hispania
Birthplace: Centrum - Centrum - Imperial Hospital, Centrum, Centrum Megalopolis, Centrum, Hispania
Birthdate: 1998 - 1998 - 1998
Age: 17 - 17 - 17
Sex: Female
Ethnicity: Jewish - Hispanian - Hispanian
Religion: Jewish - Roman Catholic - Roman Catholic and Jewish
Education: Primeria Elite de Centrum - Ateneo de Centrum - Not Applicable
Wealth: $1 000 000 - $1 000 000 - $1 000 000 000
Beauty: 9/10 - 9/10 - 10/10
Intelligence: 8/10 - 9/10 - 10/10
Loyalty: Hispania - Hispania - Hispania
Interesting way to introduce yourself.
He started to yawn but stopped it from fully materializing.
She’d actually mumbled on for a while, mainly something about the importance of politics and why the class should join the Politics Club. He’d tuned it out, much like how those with Sykes-Picot drew thin notes on the desert sand with hefty sticks and then promptly ignored the reverberations that came a decade, century later.
He only returned to the new reality when it was the next person’s turn. Kat. She was the one before him. He’d been an avid Katarina player. And he had seen a death lotus do a flash step. Shun po.
Kat still looked melancholic or more like an overly shy introvert, shut-in. Her baggy clothes really sold the whole look.
She stood at the lectern, her eyes downcast to where notes or papers would be. “I’m Kat, nice to meet you all.”
And that was it, that was all she’d said before sitting down. The previous students all said a bit more, but hers was so short, soft, and straight to the point, he decided to do the same thing.
As he got up, Kat went down. She’d closed her eyes and waited, just like he did before with the others.
Araw fixed his posture, cleared his throat, and—
The wheels of the teacher’s chair screeched, she had stood up and pointed at him. “We’ve got a god out here, a real godforsaken student among us. He’s the newest transfer, and he’s got all the As, everyone. You’ve better be prepared, he’s taking over the awards, scholarships, the whole thing. For those of you all wanting to be the top of the class, the school, you’ll have to aim for him.” She nodded at his direction before sitting back down.
Did she really do another expository dialogue?
Araw faked a cough and put his left palm on his forehead. “Well, I’m just here to do the best that I can,” he started. “Anyway guys, there’s really no need to worry, I’m planning on taking it easy this year. Got some video games or other worlds to take my time, so don’t expect me to compete for the grants, competitions, and all that. Miss is just playing with you guys, my grades are nothing special, she’s just weird.”
“Did he really just deflect the praise?”
“Well, she looked weird earlier when she was interacting with him.”
“For sure there’s something going on between them two, they seem to know each other.”
“How come she appears like our age?”
“He hasn’t even said his name yet.”
Oh right.
“Right, so my name is Araw, I’m originally from, ahem.”
Name: Araw Rio de Taha - de Taha Tribe - de Taha Clan - Hispania
Birthplace: Centrum - Centrum - Imperial Hospital, Centrum, Centrum Megalopolis, Centrum, Hispania
Birthdate: 1998 - 1998 - 1998
Age: 17 - 17 - 17
Sex: Male
Ethnicity: Hispanian, Asturias Novan - Hispanian - Hispanian
Religion: Roman Catholic - Roman Catholic - No Religion
Education: Primeria Mundo de Centrum - Ateneo de Centrum - Not Applicable
Wealth: $0 - $1- $1 000 000
Beauty: 8/10 - 9.5/10 - 8/10
Intelligence: 7/10 - 10/10 - 9/10
Loyalty: Hispania - Hispania - Hispania
Huh, almost exactly like Kat.
“I’m from Mundo, so my grades aren’t really that special.”