“volare ad excellentiam”
“Volare ad excellentiam” the crowd echoed back the Arison school motto. The church house was now crammed full of people for the year’s opening ceremony. Rows upon rows of students sat, the oldest in the back and youngest in the 3rd row. Young and frightened faces poked up behind the pews as the graduating class yawned, having heard these words many times before. The second row housed the teachers, all in proper suits and focusing with rapt attention. And in the first row were the school’s most important figures: The Principal, the school chairmen and the head academic executive, Mordred Arison, who was watching the function with cold and calculated eyes, all while his daughter was perched next to him, trying to sink down and not be seen. It was so embarrassing to have to sit in the wariness of her father instead of with her friends. She felt more out of place than she usually did, and could feel the questioning glances towards her from the new students who she was in perfect view of. She tried to crank her head around to spot her friends. There was Cas, looking disapprovingly over at Sampson while trying to listen to the opening prayer since Sampson had his head slouched over and was snoring loudly. Next to him were Teddy and Wilfred who were sitting politely but were zoned out, and finally, there was the new kid. He seemed possibly more scared than the 12-year-olds up at the front.138Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNP34UFgwZT
Father Vito finally concluded his long drawling prayer, and that was principal Redwood’s cue to stand up. He strode over to the podium with his head held high and his chest puffed out, before gazing around at the students before him.
“Over 80 years it has been since the opening of Arison Academy.” He started. “And in those 80 years, we have gone from a student population of 30 to 552.” The teachers and executives broke into applause at this, which caused all the students to join in as well.
“And in those years we have gone to foster the minds of successful doctors, lawyers, engineers and even war heroes. The man responsible for putting men on the moon was a 1942 Arison graduate. It is true what they say, the men who grow here,” he said, before glancing for a split second over at Opuntia. “blossom into the most brilliant and visionary minds of the century.”
As Redwood continued his yearly spiel about excellence, Opuntia looked around the room of men and boys and thought how stupid it all sounded. Of course they were going to be doctors and lawyers if they were whipped for failing a chemistry test. Fear was the biggest motivator the world could ever utilize, and for many at Arison, it was all they knew. The whispers carried through the halls of what happened to one kid or what would happen to another if discipline wasn’t maintained. Over anything, that was what she hated most about this place. How she once wanted to go here so badly because she was proud of being connected to such a marvel, yet now that she was on the inside of the beast, she could see its bloody and torn innards.
“May the 1st years please rise” Redwood announced to the back of the room. She watched as they all awkwardly stood up, vividly remembering her first time having to do this
“Class of 1975, do you promise to do all to achieve your excellence in the way of Arison Academy?”
“My faith, my faith, is sincere,” everyone called back, as taught to them.
“Do you promise to not stray from the light of the Lord and what is good for Arison?”
“My faith, my faith, is sincere.”
“Do you promise to remember your duty to Arison to remain disciplined?”
“My faith, my faith, is sincere.”
As they all mindlessly echoed back the phrase in unison, Opuntia knew by the looks in their eyes that they didn’t mean a single word. Or, even if they meant it now, their promises would soon deteriorate. The only way to make it out of here was to break rules and live, or else you would soon realize that you went far too long without living, and forgot how to.
“Hurry up, before Redwood sees us,” Sampson whispered to Opuntia as the crowd flooded out of the church house. Her father was still nearby with a watchful eye on her but was subduedly talking to their biology teacher. She knew she had to escape somehow for her friends' very own opening ceremony. It was a yearly tradition since their second year, and as their last one, it was the most important. Teddy soon came bounding up to them, grinning.
“Can I bring my roommate to the woods with us? I know we just met him but he’s really nice.”
“Uhhh…” They all looked at each other. Wilfred seemed indifferent, Cas raised his eyebrows in a reproachful way, while Sampson scowled.
“Teddy, he’s the one who got me stuck with Jeremy!” He said exasperatedly.
“Yeah, speaking of which, are you sure you can even go to the woods if he’s gonna notice you’re not in your dorm?” Opuntia pointed out.
“Don’t you worry about that, Arison,” Sampson said. “He’ll be up to the teacher’s lounge for the next hour, begging them all for the course schedules.”
“C’mon guys, just let him come. You’ll like him.” Teddy pleaded.
“Yeah guys, just say yes to make Teddy zip it,” Opuntia grinned at him. They all agreed before Teddy quickly sped off and returned, dragging the new boy along with him. Without another word they followed Sampson down the path back to the academy, Opuntia looking back occasionally to make sure her father wasn’t looking. But instead of following the crowd back inside and up to their beds, they turned into a crude, dirt path instead of the paved ones stretching around the school. An autumn breeze drifted around them as they traipsed into the trees, patches of them turning brilliant reds, oranges and yellows. It was hard to see in the light of the dusk sky, painted a washed-out lavender. Teddy and Opuntia kept stepping on each other’s feet, and Wilfred even got lost at one point, but they eventually all made it to the right spot: The lightning rocks.
The lightning rocks were a group of different-sized rocks, ranging from massive 5-foot boulders to merely pebbles, all stretching the shape of a circle. They had found this place because Teddy had sworn he saw lightning strike the dead centre of the forest one night during a terrible storm, and had uncovered the rock formation while looking for it. They had all hypothesized why the rocks were put there. Cas suspected an occult ritual, while Opuntia thought it could’ve been another friend group like theirs in the past. Even now, late raindrops, leftover from the rain that afternoon, slowly dripped on their heads as they chose moderately sized rocks to rest on. The new boy looked around hesitantly before sitting between Teddy and Wilfred, all as Sampson climbed onto the highest rock and stood before them, imitating Redwood with his distinguished pose.
“Welcome back my pupils, to another year of prison academy, where we have doctors, lawyers, and disappointments. Do you promise to not throw chewing gum into your hydrochloric acid beaker and keep your shirt tucked?”
“My faith, my faith, is insincere.” The friends all chanted with wide grins.
“Well, so is my Ph.D.,” Sampson retorted, causing everyone else to laugh.
“Everyone, everyone, this is my roommate. It is his first year so don’t scare him,” Teddy said to the group, gesturing to the new member.
“You should be scared,” Cas muttered darkly. “We’re only setting him up for what’s to come here.”
Opuntia agreed but didn’t take pleasure in seeing the mortified look on the new kid’s face. She leaned towards him.
“What’s your name?” She asked him kindly.
“Uh, just call me Engelbart. The rest doesn’t matter.” He replied awkwardly.
“Works for me,” shrugged Sampson, plopping down on his rock. “Sampson Laurier, I also go by Sampson the Sharp, as the chicks call me.”
“And just who would that be exactly?” Opuntia raised an eyebrow. “You aren’t exactly drowning in girls here.”
“Well, I got you,” Sampson smirked at her.
“No, you don’t,” Opuntia rolled her eyes at him. She turned her attention to Engelbart.
“I’m Opuntia Arison, and yes, I’m the only girl here.” She said, gritting her teeth.
“But she’s basically one of us, anyways so don’t even bother trying to get with her.” Sampson winked at him.
Engelbart just looked between the 2 of them, not saying anything.
Cas and Wilfred each introduced themselves as the sun continued to set and the crescent moon grew higher in the sky.
“So, why did you decide to go to Arison?” Teddy asked him.
“Well, it was mostly my parents,” Engelbart explained, “and it seemed really nice, but now it all kind of feels like a mistake…”
“It’s not all bad,” Wilfred attested, “There are lots of opportunities that come with going here, and the academic experiences rival most ivy leagues.”
“Basically you’re only safe if you’re a super genius and a super goody-two-shoes,” Sampson added.
“But don’t worry, don’t worry, we’ll help you.” Teddy comforted Engelbart. “Surviving Arison is always easier with friends.”
“Or a lot harder, depending on who you’re friends with,” Cas remarked. Even in the dim light of the moon, Opuntia could tell he was glancing at her. She immediately felt something sink in her stomach since she realized he was talking about her. She knew how much negative attention she drew to herself and to her friends just by being here, and on some days it bothered her more than others. She knew if Engelbart were to be friends with them it would happen to him too. She wondered if, like Cas, he would care.
“Well, I think it’s time for the toast,” Said Teddy, checking his golden watch to see how much time they had left. “Sampson, is it still here?”
“Should be, if a squirrel didn’t take it,” he replied. He leaped off of his boulder and began digging around in the dirt before finding an old glass bottle, filled halfway with a dark and daunting liquid.
“What is that?” Engelbart asked, looking up at the bottle warily.
“It’s an on-campus made wood alcohol,” Sampson grinned.
“Yeah, and it’s also poisonous,” Opuntia said warningly.
“It’s not poisonous! It’s only poison if you don’t make it right, right Wilfred?”
“I made this all the time back home. My recipe guarantees very minimal methanol,” Wilfred assured him.
“Minimal though,” Cas contended.
“Well, whatever, not enough to kill you anyways.” Sampson stated, but when Engelbart looked unsure, he continued, “Look, Eng, this is your initiation here! It’s customary, it’s tradition, it’s…Arison.” He said with false pretentiousness, holding the flask of alcohol high in the air. “A toast, to one more year of this place.” He said, before taking a swig. He handed it to Cas, who also, reluctantly, took a sip, then to Wilfred, then to Engelbart, who slowly raised it to his lips before breaking into a coughing fit, his face growing beet red.
“…it’s awful,” he sputtered.
“No one said it was good,” Teddy laughed, patting him on the back. ”Wood alcohol doesn’t mean an oaky aftertaste.” He drank too, wincing after the fact, before finally handing it off to Opuntia.
“No thanks,” She said, immediately dropping it back into the dirt.
“C’mon, we all did it,” Teddy pleaded.
“Well then, a toast to you dunces,” she said, holding an imaginary wine glass and smirking.
“A toast to us, then!” Sampson exclaimed, possibly already feeling the effects of the very strong liquor. And there it was, the harmony between them as they all laughed, huddled together over unseen stars, and even though Opuntia was dreading the next day, she revelled in what was now. She revelled in it all the way back to her dorm room, and into the second page of her book:
“a toast”
they said, with poison glimmering out of the glass
Since why does life or death matter if you’re already here,
descending in the flames?138Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVbtvcrdK6N
But as the fire roars around you and the smoke burns your eyes
and the great blackened hand bends you to your knees,
you know what is to come.
It’s forcing brainless nothing words to spray out of your mouth and fuel the torturous embers,
But you can’t help but grin.
Are you mad? Not yet, you see
for who surrounds you but the only ones capable of making a burning hellscape
become out of sight.
-O.M.A
ns 172.69.58.198da2
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