The weekend had been perfect. Orion had spent time with his mom, joked around with Lily, and caught up with his dad about Lucid Nexus and his work. For the first time in a while, life felt normal—simple, even. No cryptic dreams, no ominous warnings, just home-cooked meals and a warm bed that didn't come with the risk of falling into a strange abyss.
And then Monday morning happened.
Orion found himself in an empty void. No city of gold, no strange figures, no old lady whispering prophecies. Just… darkness.
Weird. I'm usually not this aware while dreaming.
Then, a voice broke through. A soft, teasing whisper.
"Now, who is this cutie sleeping here?"
Orion's brows furrowed in confusion. That was new. His dream hallucinations had never flirted with him before.
But before he could react—SMACK.
A sharp pain jolted him awake, right on his backside.
"Wake up, you dimwit! We're getting late!"
Orion's eyes shot open, and his mind barely had time to register two things: one, Rin was standing over him, arms crossed, looking impatient. Two, his ass hurt.
"What the hell, Rin?!" he groaned, rolling over and clutching his lower back. "Did you just—"
"She did."
That was Neil's voice. Orion turned his head and spotted him on the other side of the room, still lying in bed, his face buried under his pillow.
"Rin, what is actually wrong with you?" Orion groaned, pushing himself up.
Rin just grinned, unbothered. "Hey, you weren't waking up, so I got creative. You're welcome."
Orion shot her a glare. "You're a fuckin' freak."
Rin winked. "And yet, you'd be late without me."
Neil finally sat up, rubbing his eyes. "I'd like to formally request that Rin be banned from waking people up. Forever."
"No can do," Rin said, already heading toward the door. "Now, hurry up, we have class."
Orion sighed, throwing off his blankets. The last remnants of his dreamless night lingered in his mind. Something about it felt… off.
It wasn't just that he didn't dream—he always had something happening in his sleep. Whether it was normal dreams or the weird lucid ones, his nights were rarely silent.
But this time, there had been nothing.
A Normal Morning… Sort Of
By the time Orion and Neil got ready and joined Rin for breakfast, the chaos of the morning rush had already kicked in at Zenith Academy. Students were hurrying through the cafeteria, cramming last-minute notes, or half-sleeping over their meals.
Orion grabbed a tray, running a hand through his hair.
"You good?" Neil asked, watching him.
"Yeah," Orion replied, though he wasn't entirely sure. "Just… weird sleep."
Rin plopped down at the table with a cup of coffee. "You mean because I woke you up in the best way possible?"
Orion shot her a glare. "No. And let's not talk about that again."
Rin smirked but let it go.
A few minutes later, Cas joined them. She slid into the seat across from Orion, studying him for a second.
"You look different today."
Orion blinked. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Cas tilted her head slightly. "More… cheerful."
That caught him off guard. "Cheerful?"
Cas nodded. "Relaxed, I guess. You were with your family, right?"
Orion paused, then smiled. "Yeah. It was really nice seeing them again."
Cas gave a small nod, as if confirming her own thoughts. "It suits you."
Orion raised an eyebrow, but before he could respond, Rin leaned forward dramatically. "Awww, look at him. All recharged from family love."
"Shut up," Orion muttered, but he couldn't help the small grin that tugged at his lips.
The rest of the morning followed its usual routine. Classes were a mix of interesting and mind-numbingly dull, with professors droning on about neural pathways and cognition theories. Lunch rolled around, and the group found themselves at their usual table, joking and bickering as always.
For a moment, everything felt normal.
Then Rin frowned. "Hey… isn't something off today?"
Orion looked up from his tray. "What do you mean?"
Rin glanced around, then back at them. "Seth's not here."
That caught Neil's attention. "Huh. You're right. He hasn't shown up all day."
Cas leaned back slightly, considering. "That's odd. He's usually never absent."
Orion tapped his fingers against the table. He wasn't exactly Seth's biggest fan, but something about this felt… strange.
"Maybe he's just sick?" Neil suggested.
Rin snorted. "Yeah, sure. The guy who acts like he's invincible suddenly caught a cold?"
Cas narrowed her eyes. "Or maybe it's something else."
Orion didn't say it out loud, but he had the same thought.
Seth was involved in something. And his absence wasn't just random.
He just didn't know why.
Yet.