Miraculous Empire

Chapter 1: Red Light

As the school day came to a close, an unassuming teenager stepped outside her dimly lit high school and turned to face the Hudson River waterfront. The sun had begun to descend upon the city skyline causing shafts of light to peek through the skyscrapers that littered throughout the metropolis. Off to the distance, she could see the ferries coming and going between her city and the suburban bastion across the waterway. And as she took in the scenic view, she could hear the dull drone of activity from nearby streets that filled the air with honking cars, rumbling buses, and the chattering of pedestrians as they went about their evening.

Olivia, a senior at Stuyvesant, had just finished her second day at school and was already assigned a laundry list of homework due by the end of the week. Life wasn't easy as a student but she always felt fortunate for being where she was in life. Her parents were the very definition of a perfect love story; her mom was an immigrant from China and her father was born and raised in a hispanic neighborhood right here in the city. Shortly after the turn of the millennium, the two met at a park and fell in love at first sight. The couple soon birthed a daughter who took the best qualities from both nationalities. As a mix of Hispanic and Chinese, she was quick as a whip on the inside and a soft fusion of physical traits on the outside from her long silky black hair to her sun-kissed skin that emitted a certain glow whenever she was exposed to the sun.

She looked down at her watch and started to make her way across a pedestrian walkway between the steps of her school and the city at large. Olivia was on her way to meet her parents at their new confectionery store housed within The Oculus at the World Trade Center. Ever since she was a child, she would occasionally help her parents make treats for their store from traditional sweet Egg Tarts to her father's signature flan. And as the years passed by and her parent's business started to boom, they decided to relocate their enterprise and move to a bigger space in the heart of the city. Fortunately for Olivia, The Oculus wasn't too far away from school; just a ten minute walk downtown.

However, as she made her way across the walkway she was suddenly bombarded by a pair of students who ran beside her and knocked her onto the cold concrete floor. Fortunately, she caught herself by the palms of her hands and looked towards the two careless teens that raced ahead of her. As her vision came into focus, she instantly recognized the two hooligans: the school's rich kid, Chloe, and her assistant Sabrina. Chloe came from wealth and, more recently, power with her dad's recent rise to power as the mayor while her mother held a position as the editor in chief of a well known fashion magazine publication. And Chloe herself had a reputation of not only being a spoiled brat but also carrying an ego that would trump the opinions of others around her. Sabrina, on the other hand, was Chloe's personal lackey and effectively her only real peer who tolerated Chloe's personality.

Once they were out of sight, Olivia picked herself up, dusted herself off, and let out a deep sighed as she continued on her way to see her parents.

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The Oculus. 4 PM.

As Olivia turned the corner near a Post Office, she was greeted by an architectural marvel that looked down upon the streets of the financial district. The Oculus' oblong shaped form looked like a bird that was preparing to soar into the sky with its ivory wings. At the front entrance, its maw greeted customers and commuters alike into the belly of the beast that led to a hybrid space consisting of a shopping center and a transit hub. She always admired unique designs like The Oculus since it gave her a source of inspiration for her own creations whenever she journaled and doodled in private.

When she approached the sidewalk across from the shopping center, she looked toward the pedestrian signage and noticed that she just missed her chance to cross. Her parents always reminded her to refrain from rushing or jaywalking regardless of what others did around her. As she watched the traffic lights turn green, she turned her gaze towards the crosswalk and noticed an elderly asian man in a red Hawaiian shirt making his way towards her side of the sidewalk. She saw the crouched gentleman stumbling and struggling with his cane while barely making any progress to cross the street. Olivia panned around and saw a bus bolting down the street and realized that if someone didn't act fast the gentleman could get fatally hurt and end up on the ten o'clock news. She started to panic internally as she looked around to see if anyone noticed or bothered. And then, on instinct, she darted onto the middle of the road and quickly pulled the elder onto the curb; narrowly missing the front of the bus by a few inches. The gentleman's eyes widened in surprise as he turned to look at the speeding bus that almost turned them into roadkill. He then turned towards Olivia who had ended up face-first on the ground after flinging herself to get them onto safe ground.

He leaned forward on his cane and smiled at the young lady. "Thank you Miss, are you all right?"

Olivia picked herself up, for the second time of the day, and reassured the concern citizen. "Don't worry, I'm no stranger to disasters. Have a nice day sir!"

The gentleman nodded and continued on his way while Olivia crossed the street and headed into the shopping center to greet her parents before closing time.

As soon as she was out of sight, the asian elder stood straight up and turned the corner while chuckling at himself. He then reached into his pocket and pulled out a small dark-colored jewelry box that was inscribed with a series of intricate symbols on its top case.

"Are you sure she's the one, master?" A voice called out to him.

"I think... it's finally time to pass the baton, Wayzz," the elder whispered to himself as he made his way towards a subway station that connected to the other end of the transit center.

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Always look both ways before crossing the street...

I'm excited to explore a new series inspired by the superhero cartoon: Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir. For those who enjoy the original cartoon, I hope you find reimagine motifs and characters. For those who generally enjoy superheros or transformations, I hope you find this interesting as the action heats up!~

Let me know your thoughts down below in the comments and vote up this chapter if you enjoyed it! If you'd like to see more stories in the future, please consider supporting with a cup of coffee for some late night writing at: https://patreon.com/manifestbound