Laughter burst out like a dam breaking, students fell over wheezing, some looked at Zeke with stunned expressions, suprised that this kid said something so strange.
Rian hit the ground, wheezing. "He said, 'I think I hit the off switch!' Bruh, what are you on, give me some of whatever it is"
Kaito staggered back, clinging to Tala for support as tears formed in the corners of his eyes. "Bahaha! I'm gonna pass out. Did he just delete a machine?!"
The guy with the man-bun, who'd scored 742, stared at the smoldering wreck that was once the big sensor machine with his mouth ajar. "That's not… that's not even possible."
Around them, the crowd broke into a buzz of disbelief and awe.
"Wasn't that an enchanted piece of equipment?"
"He didn't even charge mana!"
When Zeke heard this, confusion flooded his mind. Mana? He clearly did... Right?
They probably aren't experienced enough to read my mana flow, Ethan always said it was weird. With that he woke from his daze and looked around.
Zeke stepped back from the pulverized machine, gaze flicking between the glowing remnants and the press of students suddenly swarming in. They shouted questions, "how'd you do that?" "what's your affinity?" "are you ranked?" "are you from one of the major families?"
It all blurred. A hand reached out from in front to touch his shoulder, maybe an attempt to appear friendly, it didn't work. Zeke flinched, hard, a look of fear flashed across his face as he stepped back instinctively. The world tilted. For a second. He wasn't in the training hall anymore.
The scent of the gym was gone.
Replaced by sour sweat, dust, and the sharp crack of a belt. Skin burning.
Another scar, just one more for the collection.
"Don't you ever raise your voice at me again. Know your place, boy-"
"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"
A young voice, his own, cracked and hoarse, rang out in desperate panic.
Not defiant. Not angry. Just broken. Powerless.
He shivered.
The words echoed, even as the vision shattered-
"I'm sorry..."
Still echoing... Still there.
The hall returned. The voices around him sharper, louder now. His hands had curled into fists. Scars on his legs and back burning beneath his clothes.
Looking around, he saw everyone looking at him strangely, no longer crowding him and asking him questions, he realises somethings going on.
Ethan's voice echoed in his mind.
"Mana can do many things, you can use it to fight, to learn and even just to cook food, but when someone doesn't give a specific command to the mana just lets it flood out, something interesting happens."
"Sometimes in the form of bloodlust or battle intent, most people just refer to it as aura."
"When using aura, it acts as an extension of one's emotions, so whatever you're feeling at the time gets amplified and pushed out... some say once you're strong enough, you can impose your will on the environment around you just by releasing your aura."
Zeke took a moment to sense the mana he was releasing. Fear? he tried to rein in the mana before people got the wrong idea.
"Back off," Rian said, stepping between him and the crowd. His voice was calm, but firm. "Give him some room."
Tala put a hand on Zeke's arm in an attempt to comfort him, not that it worked, Zeke just felt a bit weird. "Why is she touching me, this whole group lacks physical boundaries not just Rian, Geez." Tala continued talking breaking his line of thought "Breathe. You're okay. You're here."
Kaito waved his arms at the crowd. "Alright, alright, back up! Let the man breathe, jeez."
The pressure relented slowly. Some students peeled away. Others, still watching, whispered from a distance now.
Zeke's breathing slowed, but the pressure in his chest hadn't left entirely. He stared at the floor. The leftover chunks of metal. The flickering barrier still glowing faintly, a reminder that he was back in the present.
Rian crouched down beside him. "You good?"
Zeke didn't answer at first.
He didn't know what to say "Ahh, damn how awkward, they are gonna think im weird, maybe I should say something funny? no, i'll just give them a random answer".
But he settled for a more reasonable responce "too many people."
Rian nodded and slightly puffed out his chest. "Then Iwon't let anyone near you. Easy."
Tala who picked up on more than the boys sat cross-legged beside them. "You don't have to talk about it, but you also don't have to be alone in it."
Kaito gave a nod but seemed a little confused on what Tala was refering to.
Zeke gave a wry smile but didnt respnd.
A moment passed.
Then Rian stood up, cleared his throat, and declared, "Alright, so we all agree Zeke's probably an ancient weapon in human skin, right?"
That earned a few chuckles.
"But more importantly," he added, pointing to the destroyed machine, "I vote we make him fight for better spots in canteen line for us once school starts. Anyone disagree?"
The few students who stayed nearby eavesdropping burst into laughter.
After a bit of joking around with the others they walked to a different part of the training hall watching a few seniors spar, When Ethan appeared randomly, grinning, not knowing he'd missed all the fun.
"Yo guys, I'll take you to the dorms, all the people waiting for the orientation have temporary rooms assigned to them"
With a lazy wave, he called the group over and walked out the training hall where a girl with silver long hair was standing, a bored expression on her face as she waited for Ethan to walk over with the crew.
"Mina will take you to the girls' wing," Ethan said while nodding towards Tala. "Try not to fight anyone on the way."
Mina, the bored girl looked a Tala with a questioning gaze before turning around. "Let's go little bird, if you walk too slow i'll leave ya behind."
The boys and Tala parted ways outside the training hall, going in opposite directions as they stepped onto the pathway leading to the distant dorm buildings, mana lamps flickering on as the sun began to dip. The walk was quiet, other than being told to just choose any empty room and use it. Ethan walked with a bounce in his step seemingly in a good mood for whatever reason, while the boys behind him were taking in the sights along the path, the sun had started to set, casting a beautiful array of dark colours bleeding across the sky.
...
The next morning the group reunited, everyone was refreshed and excited for another day of exploring the layout of the school.
They got lost. They met eccentric crazy teachers, wild upperclassmen who tried to talk to Tala, and even saw someone riding a six-legged lizard. Rian swore he fell in love with certain seniors multiple times while collecting interesting rumors along the way. Kaito tried snacks from every corner of the academy. Tala looked around curiously while writing something in her notebook.
Zeke... didn't say much, still in a bad mood from the previous day. No one asked him to.
On the evening before the orientation, Zeke stood on the dorm balcony, watching the sun shine across the sky in a wash of gold and violet.
He placed a hand on the railing, the warmth of the sun still lingering on the metal, grounding him to the present.
For once, his mind wasn't racing. No past voices clawing at the edges. No weight pressing into his ribs. Just quiet.
His scars still ached but they weren't screaming.
His thoughts still wandered but they didn't spiral.
He didn't feel whole, not yet. But for the first time in a long time, he didn't feel hollow either.
He closed his eyes. Listened.
The others behind him laughed at something stupid probably Rian again. He didn't even need to look to know Rian would be grinning like an idiot, while Kaito is red faced, probably reacting to an innapropriate comment rian made.
His hand tightened slightly on the railing.
Eyes turned towards the statue of Orion, visible in the distance, from almost anywhere in the school.
Maybe... just maybe, he thought, ...this place could become home.