Sanctuary Agency-Chapter 19: Rise of Talent

〘Date: 2/11 - Monday〙

〘Time: 12:30 PM〙

〘Location: Texas, San Antonio - Trinity Valley University〙

The next day soon came around, the sun shining down upon the earth at its zenith, casting a warm light to balance to cool breeze of the lingering days of winter. The campus was just as busy as any other day, the students with their usual hustle and meet ups at their hangout spots.

Jaiden looked around the courtyard as he sat at our usual table, tapping his finger gently upon his desk. "Has anyone seen Ryder? It's not like him to not show up."

"Nope, he didn't even show up at the dorms last night. Must be keeping distance to be safe," Matt said, looking around the courtyard as well for any sign of me.

Paris's gaze wandered around as well, letting out a soft hum. "Do you think he ran into something? Jade did tell us he went to Oceanview to meet up with someone. You think he's still there?"

"Likely, it does take an hour to go from here to Austin. But, of all places to go, why our rival location?" Hannah asked, glancing over at Paris with a questioning gaze.

Allie shook her head, giving everyone a reassuring smile. "Ryder has extended family in Oceanview, and he went there to go to Winterfest with his half-sister and her friend. He made a promise, and he will always keep it."

Jaiden chuckled softly at Allie's explanation, looking down at his phone to check the time. "Sounds like something he would do. Let's just hope he shows up, so we won't have to call a search party."

Jade didn't interact with the group, her gaze fixated on her screen as she scrolled through her socials. As she scrolled, she came across an article including a picture of me with Juliet and Daphne, her eyes slightly brightening with recognition of the two women.

Suddenly, in a state of panic, Danny ran over toward the group's table, frost claw marks all over his face and arms. He looked behind him frantically, panting softly and grabbed Matt's shirt.

"Listen, there's a wild cat on the loose here and it just started attacking me and my crew! That...thing gave me frostbite!" Danny wailed, looking at Matt in a state of pure distraught.

Matt looked up at Danny, noticing his wounds and rose an eyebrow with slight curiosity about his attacker. He glanced past him, noticing a calico cat trotting around the courtyard, each step leaving behind frost in the shape of her paws.

"Hm..? I've never seen a cat like that before," Matt said, standing up to investigate the cat.

Everyone watched as Matt walked toward the cat, Danny watching in terror as he knew what the cat was capable of. Once Matt got close enough to her, he felt a sudden presence beside him, moving his eyes slowly to view the source.

I stared at Matt, my eyes glowing with pure ambition. Before he could react, I crow hopped toward him, landing a Superkick straight to his jaw. Matt groaned as he staggered onto one knee, holding his jaw and hissing softly in deep pain.

I rubbed under the bridge of my nose, chuckling softly as I looked down at Matt. "Hmph, so your King is still hiding? I was hoping he would show his face, but as the rules go...until he shows his face, I will wreck everyone aligned with him. Even you, best friend.."

Matt looked up at me, his lips stretching into a competitive grin. He stood up slowly, shaking his head and held out four fingers in my face. "Aye, I'm down for a little rematch any day, brother!"

I smirked at Matt, pushing his hand out of my face and rose my hand in the air, holding up the number one. "You ain't facing the normal Ryder Dawn anymore. The real me is showing...and I am The One in a Million!"

The onlookers around us watching began to shudder from my mere presence, their bodies feeling the blue ethereal energy emitting from my body. Matt could feel my energy too, his grin widening with raw excitement.

Danny watched the interaction, his body beginning to grow goosebumps as his gaze locked onto me. 'Why is Matt not scared..? He should be running, this guy is on another level now..!'

Before anyone had time to ask any question, Matt lunged toward me with a quick right hook. Blue lightning began to crackle in my hair, causing a few strands to stand up, my senses and physical attributes becoming heightened.

I swiftly ducked under Matt's attack, countering with a quick uppercut to knock him back. I began walking him down, crow hopping forward with a kick to his stomach, causing him to hurl over. I followed my attack with an open hand uppercut, popping off as I struck his face.

"Whoa, Ryder's actually going crazy," One girl whispered, leaning over to her friend to gossip.

"I knew he had hands since the fight, but this is a whole different Ryder we're seeing," Anotber guy said, analyzing the fight as he watched.

The onlookers around began to cheer, a majority cheering for Matt while only a few began to silently cheer for me. The fight began to catch the eyes of many around the courtyard, a crowd gradually forming to watch the fight.

Matt continued to launch punches at me, but my reflexes were too quick for him, each of his attacks meeting the air. I began to parry each of his next attacks, opening my arms to spread his out wide then double palmed his chest, releasing a rush of wind to knock him back.

The crowd exclaimed as they noticed and felt the rushing winds that knocked Matt away, their gazes shifting over to me in shock and disbelief. I hopped up and down, rolling my shoulders and throwing a few high speed jabs in the air as a taunt to anyone who dared to step forward.

Danny's heart began pounding into his chest, unable to internally explain what he witnessed with his own eyes. "H-He...He used...A-Al... Alchemy...?"

Jaiden was in as much disbelief as Danny was, his mind racing with a million and one questions at once, trying to find an explanation of what could've happened within one day. "Has he always been able to do this?"

Allie giggled softly, her soft, excited giggle causing everyone's heads at the table to turn. She glanced around at everyone, nodding her head. "He's always been able to do this, it's just now he's starting to show his hand of cards~ Plus, it's the year 2X50, why are we surprised anyone knows a bit of alchemy?"

"It's more that we are surprised that he's so good with it. Before any of this, we were under the assumption he was just this cute quiet guy that Tony loves to bully. Now...I think I'm way more interested in him," Hannah said, gently biting her lip as her eyes scanned me up and down.

Paris glanced at Hannah, softly giggling at her and shook her head. "And you swore up and down that you didn't find him attractive."

"Hey, can't a girl change her mind once in a while?" Hannah retorted, rolling her eyes at Paris with a light chuckle.

Matt grunted softly as he began to sit up from the ground, looking at me with a mix of fascination and discourage. He grunted softly as he felt his body aching around his midsection, wincing lightly in pain.

"Damn, bro...you ain't have to do all of that," Matt said in between grunts, chuckling off the pain as he forced himself off the ground.

I smirked at Matt, crossing my arms and tilting my head slightly. "I believe it was necessary. It's time Trinity Valley leveled up. After spending time at Oceanview, I began to see that under Tony's rule, we are too far behind."

"And as the new Rising King of Trinity Valley, it's time we level up spiritually as well, just as Oceanview has. Our old ways of thinking are making us a laughing stock for the Queen of Oceanview," I continued, crouching down to pick up Maika as she trotted over to me.

"What..? He met Queen Juliet and he's in one piece..?" One girl in the crowd gasped, looking at her friend in shock.

At my revelation, the crowd began to break out into gossips and murmurs, everyone surprised about my meeting with Juliet. I glanced down at Maika, her gaze meeting mine as we both knew we were in for a lot of questions.

"Well, well, well...if it isn't The Rising King," A snarky tone sounded from behind me.

I looked behind my shoulder, turning around and coming face to face with someone I was unfamiliar with, yet...his presence was familiar. The male before me had luscious golden hair, cold silver eyes, and a smug grin plastered upon his face.

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He wore a tailor made veridian green suit and a golden tie to match with his attire, black gloves and an expensive collaboration watch upon his wrist. His wealth truly shone brightly, everything about him screaming...Golden Luck.

"Oh em gee! It's Benedict Chance! Ahh, I love you!" One girl shrieked upon recognition of the man that stood before me.

Benedict smirked at the sound of the student's reaction, his eyes meeting mine with a touch of superiority. He let out a soft sigh, closing his eyes and crossing his arms. "Listen to this crowd. It's clear who they are in favor of here, but Tony still wishes for you to try all you want."

"You aren't the first person to challenge him. Even back in high school, his reign as Trinity Valley's King continued. He is Trinity's Crown. And you, some outsider from a lone resort island, born in a family of washed talent," Benedict continued, his tone laced with mockery and contempt.

"Hey! You don't ever talk about Destiny Islands or Mama Whitney like that!" Allie erupted, shooting up from her seat with pure pride.

Jade jumped slightly from Allie's sudden outburst, looking up at her with shock. "Allie..?"

"You don't know what you're talking about! Destiny Islands is more than a resort and Mama is amazing you—" Allie began, pausing mid sentence as I rose my hand up to get her to stand down.

I scowled at Benedict, my eyes filled with a golden brilliance, lightning crackling around my body as the pride within me began to slowly wash over. "You disrespect my home or my family again and I will snatch your tongue from your mouth, and shove it so far down your throat, you'll feel it coming down your ass..."

Benedict smirked at my threat, but his body couldn't contain the cold shudder he felt down his spine from my words. "Or what? You're gonna throw a little kick or blow my hair with some wind?"

I slowly crouched down, setting Maika down and giving her a gentle tap to command her to safety with Allie. As she ran off, I stood back up and grunted softly as I began stretching.

"Y'know...Tony and his little bitches have been trying me as of late and when I retaliate he decides to pit my own soul brother against me...and seek assistance from a fraud," I said, finishing my stretches and relaxing my body.

Before Benedict could react, a concrete pillar struck his stomach, causing him to groan in pain. While he was staggered, I ran forward, leaping in the the air and striking him with an electrifying Superman Punch, blue lightning flashing upon impact to his jaw.

The crowd blew up at the sight of my strike, those with their phones out recording the incident. Jaiden and the others couldn't help themselves but to watch with anticipation and awe, everyone finally getting to see who I really am.

I looked down at Benedict, hearing Jigoku's wrathful whispers in my mind to deal more damage to his body. As Benedict began to recover onto his hands and knees, I began to take multiple steps backwards, spreading my arms out to clear the area.

Benedict coughed heavily as he tried to push himself back onto his feet, his body still feeling the effects of my off guard attack. 'This guy...has the same mannerisms of The Ace, same kit as well—'

"You should've stayed down!" I bellowed, letting out my Tribal Howl and charging forward.

Leaping forward, I tackled Benedict, driving my shoulder into his midsection and taking him to the ground. I popped back to my feet, popping off with the crowd that cheered after my spear.

"What you talking about, boy?! You talk shit about my family and home and think you not going to get away with it?! I told y'all what I'm gonna do to you!" I shouted, pressing my foot upon Benedict's chest.

"And let this be a lesson to EVERYONE who dares to mess with me, The One, and those who stands with me The Million! So if you stand with me, acknowledge me," I said, holding my hand in the air, using the streams of blue lightning around me to form an Ace of Club's symbol, the three leaves of the clover representing the three valleys of Trinity Valley.

A few brave students within the crowd began to stand up, each one acknowledging me with the words, "I acknowledge you as the Rising King of Trinity Valley." Jaiden and the others began to become filled with hope, seeing that the start of a revolution was now beginning.

"Nah, that's low-key tough as hell," Matt quipped, staring at the Ace of Clubs that sparked over my hand.

"Yeah, it is..." Jaiden agreed, his gaze lingering upon the symbol I held above me.

〘Date: 2/11 - Monday〙

〘Time: 1:40 PM〙

〘Location: Texas, San Antonio - Trinity Valley University〙

I made my way down the halls with Jaiden and Allie following behind me, wondering where I was leading them. Following with us was our homeroom professor, Dr. Hope Beltran, one of the few professors that actually stood with me before my rise.

Hope stopped in front of a room with double doors, fixing her glasses and turning her sky blue eyes toward me. Her gaze intensified, the clutch upon her clipboard tightening. "I made some calls, paid some debts...Did what I needed to do to help you during your rise."

"Even swallowed my own pride and dignity to give Dr. Ui Okabe a call. She agreed to come teach Alchemy here under your administration. There's only so much I can do within my power, but if you need anything, I'm here," Hope finished, handing me the key to the room ahead.

I looked at the key to the room, letting out a soft exhale and smiled. I turned toward the doors, looking it up and down. "I know there's only so much you can do when you side with me, but don't worry. Everything will come to plan soon."

Hope smiled at me, fixing her natural lavender hair and hummed lightly in response. "I know. After your stunt though, I'm sure you'll have many targets on your head. Remember, Tony fights dirty."

I nodded, heeding her advice closely and turned to face Hope. "I know...and I will be well equipped for anything he has going on."

Hope nodded back at me, gently patting my shoulder before walking off. Jaiden and Allie watched as she retreated down the halls, a grateful smile forming on their lips as they knew Hope was a permanent member of our alliance.

I made my way closer to the door, using the key to unlock the doors and pushed them open. I flipped the switch to turn on the light, revealing a vast club room that I could use as a safe haven for myself and my supporters.

"Whoa...Even the club rooms in highschool weren't this huge. You could really fit a lot of people here," Allie marvelled, wandering around the room to get a true feel for its space.

"This is perfect. Finally a safe haven for our side...now we can keep others safe while the school is under war right now," Jaiden said, walking toward the window and leaning against the sill. "So what's the plan? As far as active fighters, it's only me and you..."

"Yeah, that's true...my immediate circle being small doesn't help either. Maybe we could ask around and see if anyone would like to help us," I replied, leaning my back against the wall as I began to think, watching as Maika wandered around the room.

Allie began to think as well, letting out a soft hum. Suddenly, a light bulb lit up in her head, letting out an excited gasp. "Hey, I can ask two of my friends if they can help! And, we can see if we can find others."

I looked at Allie, moving my eyebrow and giving her a smile of approval. "That sounds good. We gotta start somewhere."

Allie nodded enthusiastically, letting out a soft giggle. "Right! I'll head on now!"

With a burst of motivation, Allie sprinted out of the room, making her way down the hall to find her friends. Jaiden and I watched her, the two of us chuckling together.

Jaiden turned around to face me, leaning his shoulder gently upon the wall with his arms crossed. "Well, since you're back...what's the next play? Who should we ask to join us?"

I stared at the floor, thoughts running through my mind about a few candidates that I could choose from. Once an idea came to mind, I snapped my fingers looking up at Jaiden with a confident smile.

"Since I know Tony has secret connections based off Benedict, I know I'll need to stack up my crew as well. Tony has Benedict, Matt, Wade, Danny, and an unnamed Queen. All we have right now in terms of fighting...it's just you and me," I began, pushing myself off the wall then walked toward the large, round desk, setting my phone down on the surface.

I brought up a map of the entire Trinity Valley County, Phroa expanding the image off the screen with a holographic display. "Trinity Valley is home to three great families outside of the Rich Family. Leon Valley has the von Regan Family, La Vernia has the Ackerman Family, and finally the furthest city, Crystal City has the Reigns Family."

"Mmm, alright. I'm seeing your vision. You're wanting to recruit their best aren't you?" Jaiden asked, looking at me with an intrigued gaze.

"Yep," I answered, grabbing my phone off the table with a smile. "And all three happen to attend this university. Before I decided to show up, I did a little research in the morning."

"We are looking for Claudio Ackerman, Leonidas von Regan, and Anastasia-Aurora Reigns. All three happen to be a part of the same family tree in one way or another,"

Jaiden nodded at my explanation, thinking over my plan with a low hum. "Your plan sounds just, but there is one issue. Those three are already in some powerful factions within the university. Claudio leads the La Vernia Wolves, Leonidas leads the Black Lions, and Elissa leads the Golden Crystals."

"And currently their families are in a bit of a dispute," Jaiden added, meeting my gaze with a hint of slight conflict.

"Hm? Dispute? What for?" I questioned, lending my ears to hear about the dispute.

Jaiden averted his gaze a bit, not wanting to be the one to tell their business. "Mmm, if anyone asks, you heard this from one of my fangirls. Apparently, the families own their own military groups that are owned by the Sanctuary Agency."

"Well, apparently the Reigns are trying to invade La Vernia Valley because of their new discovery of their new discovery of Natural Orichalcum in one of their mines yesterday. However, the von Regans and the Agency allied with the Ackermans to stop them," Jaiden continued, his tone growing more serious as he explained.

I listened to his explanation carefully, crossing my arms as I began to plan out how to approach the three. "Hmm...these new set of cards are hard to play with. What mineral does Crystal Valley have?"

Jaiden rose an eyebrow at my question, wondering where I was heading with my inquiry. "Crystal Valley...uh despite its name holds Gold, but recently discovered diamond. But it doesn't hold a candle to Rhodium and Orichalcum."

I nodded at his answer, making a few theories on why the Reigns would want to invade La Vernia. Parts of my mind began to connect the dots between the recent invasion at La Vernia from the Lost Syndicates, a calculated smirk forming on my lips.

"Hm...I might be playing a true Joker's Gamble here, but I think I might go with the Golden Crystals. If my hunches are right, Anastasia and her entire group would be allied with Tony's family out of necessity like Matt," I said, making my way toward the door.

"It's time to break this system from the inside," I finished, walking out of the safe haven to find the Golden Crystals clubroom.

Jaiden watched as I left, having mixed emotions about my decision, but ultimately decided to follow behind as well. Though he knew that taking the side of the Golden Crystals was morally wrong to him, he trusted whatever gamble I had in mind.