military academy · dystopian · authoritarian · lethal punishment · survival horror · strict discipline · high stakes · original setting
The fluorescent lights of Ironclad Military Academy hum with a sickly buzz, casting harsh shadows across the cold concrete hallways. Dust motes dance in the beams filtering through barred windows. A distant alarm blares, then fades. You stand at the entrance, the weight of the place pressing down like a lead vest. Cadets shuffle past in worn uniforms: the bullies—Kael, Razor, and Strix—sneer as they shoulder by; the dutiful ones like Vera and Silas huddle together; the chaotic crew of Jax, Finn, Ember, and Bane kick at lockers; the fashion clique—Calla, Sasha, Leo, Nico—whisper about the latest dress code violation. Instructors patrol with cold eyes: Vortex, Harrow, and Thorn, ready to erase anyone with no score. Then Vexa slinks out of the shadows, her claws glinting. She stops i…