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Orion's Rise: From Zero to Hero in Two Worlds Chapter 24
The morning air bit at Jared's face as his feet pounded against the pavement. Six kilometers down, one to go. His breath came out in small clouds, dispersing into the crisp Brno morning. Every stride felt heavier than usual. Running used to clear his head, but lately his thoughts kept circling back to how quiet things had gotten. No Orion to push around. No real satisfaction in watching other kids scatter when he walked down the halls.Thump. Thump. Thump.His running shoes hit the ground in a steady rhythm that felt wrong somehow. Like the sound wasn't quite matching up with his steps."Getting soft," he muttered to himself, rounding the corner where Old Man Filip's hot dog cart should've been waiting. The empty spot made him stumble to a halt.Filip's cart had been there every morning for the past two years. Rain or shine, the old man would wave as Jared ran past, sometimes calling out "Looking strong today!" in his thick Czech accent. Jared always pretended not to care, but that s
Orion's Rise: From Zero to Hero in Two Worlds Chapter 25
The clock on the wall ticked backward for three seconds, and Jared was the only one who noticed.He sat in his usual spot near the window, trying to focus on Mr. Novotný's lecture about the Cold War, but the numbers on the clock kept dancing. They'd move forward normally, then skip back, like a broken video file.Tap. Tap. Tap.His pencil hit the desk in an uneven rhythm. Ryan, sitting next to him, shot him an annoyed look."Dude, you okay?" Ryan whispered. "You've been weird all morning.""What's weird about being bored in history class?" Jared muttered back, but his voice came out wrong - like there was an echo underneath it.Ryan frowned. "Not that. You walked straight through Petra earlier without even noticing her.""Through her?""Past her," Ryan corrected quickly, but Jared had caught the slip. Had he actually...? No. That wasn't possible.The fluorescent lights overhead flickered, but when Jared looked up, they were steady. Just like they'd been steady when he thought he saw t
Orion's Rise: From Zero to Hero in Two Worlds Chapter 26
The strange sparks had faded by the time the final bell rang, but Jared's hands still tingled like they'd fallen asleep."Hey," Tomáš called out across the parking lot. "We're heading to the mall. Some middle schoolers have been acting tough lately. Want to help put them in their place?"A month ago, Jared would have been right there with them. Now the idea made his stomach turn. "Pass. Got stuff to do.""Since when do you have stuff to do?" Martin chimed in. "Come on, man.""I said no."Jared turned away before he could see their reactions. The walk home took him past the park, where fallen leaves skittered across the path like they were trying to spell something.That's when he saw it.A letter, hovering at eye level, completely still despite the autumn breeze. Its envelope was a deep purple that seemed to swallow light, marked with a seal he'd never seen before but somehow recognized: a twisted tree wrapped around a sword.He reached for it, half expecting his hand to pass through
Orion's Rise: From Zero to Hero in Two Worlds Chapter 1
“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
Orion's Rise: From Zero to Hero in Two Worlds Chapter 2
"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
Orion's Rise: From Zero to Hero in Two Worlds Chapter 3
“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
Orion's Rise: From Zero to Hero in Two Worlds Chapter 4
"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
Orion's Rise: From Zero to Hero in Two Worlds Chapter 5
“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.
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