Olympia Academy (Stray Kids)

Chapter Seven (Iris)

Iris fidgeted with the pleats in her uniform skirt. She adjusted her seated position slightly. The wooden bleachers were highly uncomfortable against her bare legs. The hot sun beat down on the students sitting in the bleachers. Between the set of bleachers was a small grassy area, just wide enough for a few chariots to fit through.

A soft hum filled the area around the arena. The students had learned that this was a magical barrier to keep the competitions private and protected from any outside influences. Iris had learned from Calliope, who had heard it from a goddess she couldn't remember now, that mortals sometimes wandered into the mountains. Calliope had told her that the barrier was necessary for their safety. Or, at least that was what she had heard.

While sitting, she made small talk with Selene to her left and Calliope and Artemis to her right. Hypnos and Eos sat in front of them, occasionally turning to talk to the younger students. They mostly whispered to themselves in a serious tone. Hypnos wore a stern expression on his face. Iris curiously watched Eos put a hand on his shoulder.

Apollo sat to Artemis' right and was chatting with the goddesses. Iris appreciated his jokes to lighten her nerves. He mostly addressed Selene, who Iris could tell was trying her best to participate in the small talk. She had never been the outgoing one between the two of the friends.

Iris looked away from her friends and to the top of the opposite bleachers. Sitting in the middle, surrounded by academy staff and what she assumed were servants, was the Elder Hades. Iris shook, her nerves getting the best of her. She had always been taught to fear this god. He looked particularly daunting staring at the Olympia Academy bleachers. She turned her head and saw the Elder Zeus sitting in a similar area of their own bleachers, returning Hades' ugly stare.

Iris shuddered. She wondered if she could make it through today's competition alive.

"Welcome!" A booming voice suddenly called out. A quick hush fell over the crowd of deities. "Welcome to the first competition between Olympia Academy and Persephone Academy."

Iris recognized the man as an Olympia Academy professor. Her face twisted at the too-excited expression he wore.

"Four teams will be competing against each other today," a professor from Persephone Academy announced. "These will be Communication, Death, War, and Water."

Cheers erupted from both sets of bleachers when the teams were announced. Iris saw Eos rubbing Hypnos' shoulder as the teacher announced the Death team.

"We request," the professor said, turning to look at all of the rowdy students on both sets of bleachers, "that you participate fairly, and treat all students with respect."

Iris looked at the students of Persephone Academy in their black uniforms. Unsurprisingly, she couldn't find a familiar face in the crowd. She wondered why she even bothered looking for one.

"First, the Communication teams will be competing. This will be a simple match, consisting of calligraphy," the Olympia Academy professor announced.

Great, Iris thought. She was far from confident in her calligraphy skills. Two weeks of class was hardly enough to prepare her to compete against these more experienced gods and goddesses. 

"The participants will be crafting a script of the myths of the Elder Ares."

Iris saw a group of gods on the other bleachers cheer and slap a boy on the back. The boy hid his face as the other students teased him. She looked at Selene, and the girls rolled their eyes at the gods on the opposite bleachers.

"May I have the Communication team from Olympia Academy please stand?" the Persephone Academy teacher asked. 

Iris, Calliope, and eight other students she knew from her classes stood.