Pantheo High: Enrollment

A Very Welcoming Address

If there was one word for the covered court, it would be this: grand. Bright shining lights from the dome filled the court, lighting it clear for everyone to see. In the middle of the court was a wooden podium with a wireless mic attached through a stand at the left of it. On the left and right were ten rows of bleachers stretched from one corner of the court to the other, and on the other side of the court were a pair of iron doors with cage-like peepholes. Just seven inches in front of her was a sleek, shiny basketball court, with white metal posts that held up the orange basketball rings on both sides. The walls were light brown, with banners hung around loosely, as if they just hung them around. As Psyche took a step closer, students busted from the doors behind her and started swarming to their seats, as if they were about to miss the premiere of a blockbuster. As they crowd the bleachers, Psyche walked towards the left courtside seat nearest to the exit and sat down to wait for the orientation.

The crowd was a mumbling mess: new students looking around in awe and confusion, old students high fiving each other and hanging around the corners of the bleachers with an excited smile on their faces. As Psyche's eyes wandered, she noticed a set of banners on the walls; green satin cloths in the shape of an upside-down pentagon. In the middle was the black insignia of a stag head, with its large grand antlers and pristine coat of fur. Its eyes were colored green and below the symbol were the names of the athletes, their respective sport, their placing, and the commemorated date. Psyche read a few of them: 

Hermes, Track and Field, 2nd Place, September 13, 1940;

 Athena, Pankration, 2nd Place, January 18, 1962; 

Hachiman, Archery, 3rd Place, May 2, 1986. 

Before Psyche could bore herself to death by reading every single banner, most of the lights go off, leaving only the court to be illuminated. Then, a group of girls wearing green and black cheerleading uniforms came out from the other side of the court from the cue of a whistle, marching through and doing their chant as they jogged into position, green pom-poms in hand. After arriving in front of the students, they do their routine of flipping and flying high into the air. And by flying, it's actual flying: floating in the air like a bunch of fairies. Their movements were so coordinated, so precise, it was hard not to think of them as one unit. After the routine, a thin, tall blonde who seems to be the head cheerleader walked towards the podium and giggled as she grabbed the mic.

Lead Cheerleader: Hey there, newbies! 

She said in a very cheery tone, with the accent of a Valley girl.

Head Cheerleader: My name's Freya, captain of the cheer squad and your current student body president! It's my honor to welcome you all into your first year as students of Pantheo High!

Applause and cheering roared from the old students and the new who just have a thing for blondes. A random guy from the back stood up.

Random Guy: I love you, Freya!

Freya blushed and giggled a bit.

Freya: Oh, stop!~ 

She then composes herself, takes a deep breath, and rests her right fist on her right hip as she held up the mic.

This year, we will be kicking off the first day of school with a message from none other than our dear principal, Mr. Hades!

Just right on cue, a spotlight shines on the right door as a tall, suited man with long white hair, a ghostly pale complexion and a thin smile walked in casually to the podium, with the cheerleader handing him the mic. 

Hades: Good morning students! Welcome to another year in Pantheo High. Before we get started, I'd like you all to look at the person next to you.

He spoke in a very low voice with a tinge of British in his accent. The moment he said those words, everyone looked at each other in confusion. Hades maintained his smile.

Hades: Now look at yourselves. 

Hades' voice was blood-curdling as if he was some kind of Bond villain. The way he talked at a very low English accent gave off some sort of power, like how a strict father would talk to a child that forgot their place in the family pecking order.

Hades: The faces you saw today, are the future of the universe. From this point onward, you get to decide what kind of deity you want to be. I know from experience, that finding out who you really are and what you are destined for will be the longest and hardest journey you will ever have. But, that's why you are here. The purpose of this school is to educate you and guide you to the path that leads to your best and most genuine self possible. I am not going to lie; your path won't be easy. Every now and then, you will have many misgivings and you will fail many times over. But that's part of it. What counts, is that you keep moving forward. We don't ask you all to be big and powerful gods. That's on you. All we wish is that twenty, thirty years from now, you are certain of who you are, and what your purpose is, that you can look at us in the eye, and finally tell us-

Suddenly, Rose, Bragi, and Loki burst out of the left door in a panic, panting and sprinting across the stage, with Rose snatching the mic out of Hades' hands, and shouted as the three of them ran to the right door. with Bragi and Loki staying right in the middle of the court.

Rose: RUUUUUN!!

Suddenly, what happened next was something never before said in print. Or ever, so here it goes: A 20 foot tall, white and black Shih Tzu busted through the doors, panting and slobbering, running around the covered court. Its snowy white fur flowed like a wolf's, every strand of hair flowing smoothly. Its floppy ears flowed down to its jawline, with streaks of brown on the tips. Two shiny black obsidian orbs were its eyes and its entire body frame was lean but large, with ebony claws and two rows of pearly white, drool-glazed incisors and canines on its mouth. Its nose was this raisin shaped dot that had two holes and twitched as it picked up the scent of the place. Its eyes sharpened, showing the whites in its eyes as it snarled and looked around for whatever ticked it off.

Students ran in panic as the Shih Tzu growled and barked at them. Just as the panic started, everyone started shoving and pushing each other to get to the nearest exit. As Psyche got up, she was accidentally shoved into one of the gaps underneath the bleachers, making her fall into the ground hard. The entire court was pure chaos, with Loki and Bragi trying to divert the Shih Tzu's attention from the crowds while Hades and Rose were ushering most of the people into the right door while Freya and the other cheerleaders ran to the left door, screaming. As Psyche got up in a daze, she faintly overheard Hades and Rose yelling at the students to run as fast as possible as they ushered the students out the other door. Hades growled as his skin glowed ghostly white, and his suit started to shift like murky ink.

Hades: I thought you had this under control!

He roared at him. Despite the scare tactic, Rose shouted back from the swarm of students separating them.

Rose: Good to know we're on the same page!

As they herded everyone out, the Shih Tzu growled and barked with the sound equivalent of an artillery cannon. The bark shook the building, as Loki and Bragi distracted the monster by going up the bleachers and calling it out from either side.

Bragi: Hey mutt!! Over here!!!

As the Shih Tzu turned and got smacked in the face with Bragi's ax. The creature growled in rage but before it could bite Bragi's head off, Loki shouts.

Loki: ALGIZ!!!!

Suddenly, green whisps surround Bragi's immediate vicinity like a forcefield. The Shih Tzu chomped and scratched the green, murky forcefield, only for it to bounce back. Loki then proceeded to run along the bleachers as the Shih Tzu diverted its attention and started chasing him.

Loki: ROOOOOOSE!!!

As Rose heard Loki's scream, he sighs in exasperation.

Rose: Listen, you get these guys to safety and lock the doors while we handle this.

As the last evacuating student got out, Hades grabbed both doors and glared at Rose.

Hades: It better work this time! 

He slammed the doors and locked them from the outside. Meanwhile. Psyche crawls beneath the bleachers like a soldier and got to the other side, rubbing her head as she stood up.

Psyche: Uuuugh. What ha-

Her sentence was cut short as she turned her head and saw the giant Shih Tzu chasing Loki around the court in circles. Bragi runs towards the giant mutt as it approaches the bleachers next to her and rams it with the forcefield around him. The forcefield breaks into a green gust of wind and smoke, but the Shih Tzu falls into the bleachers, breaking them and creating a giant dog-sized hole on it. As smoke filled the area of impact, the sound of debris and wood churning could be heard as the creature got up, growling and sniffing the air. Its head turns to Psyche, and the creature crawled towards her, its paws flattened anything beneath them. The Shih Tzu sniffs her up but then turns its head as it heard Rose's taxi whistle. 

Rose: There you go, just follow me, and everything will be alright.

While Rose was coaxing the Shih Tzu for its attention, Psyche tried to walk away slowly. But then her phone played the Yuri On Ice ringtone out loud. The Shih Tzu turned its head, teeth bared with drool dripping down its lower lip. Psyche bolted for the doors while the Shih Tzu followed. Rose extended his arms and large rose vines sprouted out from his sleeves. They wrap around Psyche's waist and pull her into the air before gently laying her down behind Rose. The Shih Tzu whips its body, doing a 180 before drifting on the floor with its claws out, facing them with its snarling maw and dark eyes. Psyche got up and looks at Rose. 

Psyche: Is this part of the orientation?!

Rose looked back and gave her a nervous smile.

Rose: Yeah, uh, you can call it that.

As the giant Shih Tzu ran towards them, Loki ran towards the Shih Tzu's left side, transformed himself into a 20-foot tall white poodle, and tackled the Shih Tzu, while Rose holds Psyche's hand as they ran to the left door, with Bragi following right behind them. Rose and Bragi hold the doors for Psyche as they run off, with Loki catching up to them, turning back into human form with the giant Shih Tzu running behind them. They all turn left, up the stairs, but the Shih Tzu slides through, unable to turn, and crashes into a wall. The four go right and hide in a library, in between shelves, catching their breath as loud barking shook the walls and floors, shaking books out of the shelves.