Tate Under Siege [Starter]
Tate Academy had lived in relative peace for what seemed like a long time, now. The sudden wave of human amnesia had been a gift to some and a curse to others, but regardless of which, it had gifted the school with an almost tranquil ambiance. Some believed this would be the end of it - that mutants and humans would live together now, the latter charitably ignorant. Others were not so content. Many of the school's inhabitants were certain history would repeat itself; that the humans would discover them again and promptly set out to destroy them once and for all. Only another plague in the history of mankind.
Naturally, both sides were equally bewildered when neither - and yet both - happened at once.
It was a cold day, but not unusually so. The sky was as overcast as one was wont to find in England, the lawn of the mansion dusted with a fine layer of frost that was just resilient enough to not turn to dew. Very few of the students or staff owned automobiles - travel was done by foot or bicycle or carpool - so more than a few scant eyes lifted when the distant purr of an engine sounded, and then another. A caravan of dark green, glossy vans was sweeping up the school's drive.
The vans all rolled to a halt at precisely the same time, the line so long that the end couldn't even be seen - the cars were dotted up and down the drive and around the curve in the road leading away from the mansion. Clunky, large figures began emerging from the vehicles. As they approached the school, however, it quickly became apparent that it was not their bodies making them large and awkward - but the thick, rubbery suits they wore. Each the same uniform blue-silver color, and worn like a protective second skin over every man and woman. Helmets were also employed, great steel bulbs with a glassy, semi-reflective front. The helmets seemed like an ultimately multi-purpose tool, each one clearly including enormous cylindrical headphones, a grated gas mask, and a tiny transmitter on the right side that occasionally winked red.
At the spearhead of the group walked a woman. She was not tall, but lithe and graceful nonetheless. The hundreds of small braids that made up her hair were swept back into a no-nonsense ponytail, and her helmet was off, instead held in one hand. The mocha skin of her face and her dark, calm eyes saw the school without a reflective bubble between them. The group of suited men and women paused together, a respectable distance from the school, and they waited.
A murmur of fast, shy words shivered through Tate's halls. It seemed to take a long time, but the front doors of the school opened. People began to slip down the steps and onto the grass, cautious or angry or afraid. Even then, nothing happened. It was another good fifteen minutes before anything occurred, and even then, it was only words.
The woman cleared her throat. "Students of Tate Academy. I am agent Peterson. First and foremost, I would like to make something clear: we have not come to harm you. We have not come to take you away. We have come here to establish an... agreement." She paused, eyes moving over the faces of the crowd in front of her. "I will state now, however, that we will employ necessary force if any of you react with vindictive aggression, or act with the intention to harm my men, or myself."
Agent Peterson crossed her arms across her chest. "This arrangement has been discussed for a while, now, and it has been decided that it is a fair and neutral arrangement for all included parties. Firstly," she began at last, "human soldiers will be installed in Tate Academy. Their purpose is to only assure me, and my superintendant, that the newly implemented rules are going to be followed. They will not harm you or others, and will only use force if, like I said before, it becomes necessary. If the rules are followed... well, it will almost be as if we aren't here at all."
She half-smiled - granted, it looked forced - and continued. "There will be no internet access, nor live television. This is to prevent fear from spreading outside these walls. Phone calls to outside family or friends may be made, but only if their identification is proven without a doubt, and a soldier is present at the time of the call, and able to hear both sides of the conversation. A curfew will be implemented. Legal adults, eighteen and over, must be in their own school-appointed rooms by eleven PM. Juveniles must be in their rooms by nine PM." A quiet clamor had begun in the crowd, and she raised a hand for silence. "I assure you, your lives will not be greatly affected by these changes. They are for the safety of yourselves and others, and for the benefit of both the humans and the... mutated humans, such as yourselves."
"Rules..." her eyes swept over the crowd, "rules must be followed. Always. If they are not, you are potentially endangering both yourself and others. I'm sure you wouldn't want to cause any trouble for your friends. The consequences for rule-breaking are not light. One of several approved punishment techniques will be used, depending on the graveness of your rulebreaking, and if you are a former offender. Lastly..." she glanced over her shoulder, where several of her soldiers were doing something with long steel poles topped with ovular orbs. "You will not be leaving school grounds for any reason." The last of the rods, each about twenty or so feet long, were slid into neat holes in the ground.
"This-," she flung her arm back and pointed at the nearest rod, finger then trailing to point out several more, where they looped around the property in a loose chain, "is a perimeter. And it is now... active." She hit a small black button on a tiny transmitter that she held in her hand. For a long second, nothing seemed to have happened. Then, slowly, it could be heard. A buzzing hum, the sound fluctuating oddly at moments, came into earshot. Like a swarm of insects that always seemed to be approaching, but never did. "I do not recommend coming within five feet of this perimeter. It is a necessary precaution to ensure the safety of the Tate students, and also that of the civilians living in Redwood. You will not be able to cross it due to your genes. No amount of trying will get you through it, I will assure you of that now."
She looked over her shoulder, at her soldiers, and nodded. She then slipped on her own helmet and locked it into place. The men and women behind her began to move toward the school, striding in formation toward the crowd of students and staff, and the still-open door to Tate Academy.
