“You’re holding it wrong.”
Seraphina’s voice cut through the stillness of the clearing.
Sharp. Direct.
I looked down at the energy ball that was whirling around my hands; it was glowing. My fingers trembling slightly.
“I’m holding it exactly how you told me.” I said. Trying not to let the frustration show.
***
Weeks had gone by.
I know you must've been wondering.
Where was Ben?
Well, we teleported back home that day together.
He was tired out. Well. More like shocked to silence.
He was numb.
But he made it home safe.
In case you were wondering.
Anyways...
***
She sighed. Stepping closer.
“Did you seriously wear that today?” Jared's voice was as sharp as a knife.Piercing through the noise of the hallway. I could tell he was talking to me without even looking up.He always was.I continued to walk.Fixing my eyes on the marked floors of the school hallway. Maybe if I ignored him, he’d get bored.Maybe this time, he’d just… stop.“Hey, Sergio,” he called again. Louder now. I could hear the sound of his footsteps following me. "I’m talking to you. You deaf, or just stupid?”I sighed. “Both, apparently.”Too late to take THAT back.I felt bad as soon as the words were spoken.He grabbed the back of my collar.And pulled me to a halt.His hot breath hit the side of my face.Smelling like whatever he had eaten for breakfast. "What was that?”I swallowed hard. “Nothing,” I said, trying to shrug out of his grip. “Just—nothing.”Jared let out a low chuckle, and his grip loosened. “That’s what I thought. Nothing. Just like you.”I could hear his friends laughing behind h
"I didn’t think.. you would actually show up."Emily was seated on the staircase in front of the library.Hugging her knees.Her eyes flicking up to meet mine as I approached. The sun was setting behind her.It cast a soft, golden light on her face. For a moment, she looked almost... innocent."Why wouldn’t I?" I asked. I dropped my bag beside her and sitting down."You texted me." A tiny, soft chuckle escaped from her lips. "Yeah, but I didn’t think you would want to talk after... you know, yesterday."Yesterday.The fountain.Jared.My sketchbook, still drying out in my room. Its pages wrinkled and ruined.I hadn’t spoken to Emily since then.I had not really wanted to.But, when her text arrived on my phone after school, I ended up heading there without stopping to consider a plausible reason."I mean.. it’s not like you did anything."I tried to speak without showing any bitterness in my tone. "You just stood there."Emily’s smile faltered.She looked down at her shoes."I
“You still alive, Sergio?”The voice was Jared’s, of course.It always was.I kept my head down.Pretending I hadn’t heard him. Hoping that maybe.Just maybe.He would eventually get bored again and move on.I knew better than that.He stepped closer.His footsteps created squeaking sounds.. as he walked down the linoleum floor in the hallway.“Hey, freak.""I am talking to you.”I sighed and turned around.My back against the lockers. Jared stood there.Arms crossed.A smirk plastered on his face. His friends.A couple of brainless shadows.Hovered behind him, snickering.“What do you want?” I asked. My voice was flat.I’d given up trying to sound tough.It never worked, anyway."Oh, not much," Jared remarked.He raised his head as though he was genuinely considering it.“Just checking in.""You know.. making sure you haven't done something drastic.""Like jumping off a bridge, after what Emily did to you.”Her name being brought up.. felt like a blow to the stomach.I had not spo
"Didn't I tell you.. not to look at me, Sergio?"Even though Jared's voice was hardly more than a growl,It sounded to me like a siren.I kept my eyes down;My head down;And my back against the cold brick wall.All other sounds were muffled by the laughter,The footsteps of his friends coming closer,And the distant voice of a teacher behind the doors.That one voice was all I could hear.Jared's.I opened my mouth;My tongue was starting to form words.*Say something.But I choked on the words.I felt like my body was frozen.As though my limbs were fixed.I had lost all sense of my purpose for being here.Why I kept coming back,Day after day. To this dumb school."I asked you question." Jared said.Abruptly, his hand grabbed my shirt collar.Yanking me forward."Did I not?""Yeah," I croaked.“You did.”"And?"He smiled and leaned close enough for me to smell the slight tang of cheap cologne and sweat. “What’s your excuse this time, huh?""Gonna cry about it?""Or maybe you’ll ru
“Dude. What the hell was that?”Jared’s voice sounded different now. A little less confident. A lot more confused.I didn’t answer him. I couldn’t. My head felt busy. I couldn't think straight. Everything was confusing. I tried to figure it out. The way I was moving... it wasn’t normal. None of this was normal.I looked down at my hands.They were steady. But something felt off.There was energy pulsing just beneath the surface. Waiting for me to do something with it.I didn’t know *what*, though. Didn’t know *how*.“Answer me, Sergio!” Jared was closing in again. He wasn’t laughing this time.His friends weren’t either. They were hanging back. Watching me. Like I was some kind of freak show. Maybe I was."I.. I'm not sure," I replied. I said. My voice was smaller than I intended.I tried to talk. My voice came out too quiet.I did not intend to speak quietly. I did not mean to appear mysterious.I just didn't know what was happening. Everything was confusing to me.Jared sneered.
"You’re awake. Finally."The voice wasn’t mine.It wasn’t anyone I knew. But it was there. Clear as day. Echoing inside my head.I blinked. My eyes struggling to focus. I wasn’t in the alley anymore.I wasn’t even sure I was... anywhere. Everything around me was dark. No, not dark. Just blank. Empty.Like I was floating in some kind of void.“Who... who are you?” I said.My voice sounded distant, even to me."I am your Guide."The voice was calm. Almost soothing.This.. didn't feel comfortable, at all.It wasn’t *really* a voice. More like... an idea.A thought that had somehow turned into words.“My... Guide?” I repeated. Trying to sit up, but my body didn’t move.I wasn’t sure if I even had a body here."Yes. I am here to help you understand the system."I frowned. The system. Right.The hologram. The energy. The way I’d thrown Jared and his friends across the yard like they weighed nothing.It all came flooding back, hitting me like a wave.“What... what is this?” I asked.My voic
“You sure no one’s gonna see you out here?”I glanced over my shoulder.Ben was leaning against the fence. Arms crossed. He observed me. As if I was going to magically produce a rabbit from a hat.Ever since I mentioned that I needed his assistance. He had been feeling nervous.I didn’t blame him.If our positions were reversed. I would probably be panicking too.“Relax.” I cleaned my hands on my jeans. “It’s early. No one’s around.”Ben raised an eyebrow.“Yeah, except for the neighbors.""And, y’know. Cameras. You ever heard of those?”I gave an eye-roll.“It’s fine. I scoped the place out. No one’s gonna see anything.”“That’s what they always say.""Right before they get caught on YouTube.”He didn’t move from his spot, though.Just kept watching. He was anticipating something outlandish to occur.I can understand why he is doubtful.Hell. Even I had doubts. And I was the one with the powers.“Alright.” I took a deep breath. “Here goes nothing.”I focused on the rock in front of
“You’re seriously telling me there’s a secret underground tunnel in the middle of Brno.”Ben’s voice echoed slightly. Bouncing off the damp walls of the tunnel as we walked.His flashlight flickered in and out. Casting dim light on the narrow path ahead.I could faintly hear water dripping in the distance.“Not a tunnel.” I corrected. Stepping over a broken tile. “A catacomb.”He snorted. “Yeah. Because that makes it so much better.”I couldn't resist smiling. “You’re the one who wanted to come along.”“Yeah. I wanted to see if you were losing it. Not. Y’know. *Actually* go dungeon crawling.”“If you want to turn back.”“I’m not turning back.” He cut in. Sounding defensive. “I just. I don’t get how you even found this place. A catacomb. In Brno. Since when.”I stopped walking for a second. Shining my light on a section of the wall.Old, weathered bricks stared back at me. Covered in scratches and faded symbols.“Since always, apparently. People just don’t talk about it.”Ben came up