Chapter 1
Hi, my name is Aurora Nightcore. Yes, I said “Nightcore,” the kid with the worst luck in the village. People love to throw around names like “useless,” “freak,” “stupid,” and “deadeye” because I can’t see things properly. And then there’s “Multi”—that one isn’t exactly flattering either.
My life has been anything but dull. When I was four, my parents died; nobody knows how. Some say it was murder or that it was my fault. My older brother has been missing for eight years now. I’ve had to grow up fast, taking care of myself, balancing a job, and school, and just getting by with one meal daily. At least I have a small apartment, so I have a roof over my head.
I have dark brown hair that falls into a messy fringe, and I rarely bother to style it. Today, I’m wearing an oversized dark blue top, a darker blue jacket, and black pants. i have grey eyes and a scar on my left cheek, and my skin is a warm beige.
In class, my teacher’s voice broke through my thoughts. “Hey, Aurora, pay attention,” he said firmly. “Yes, sir,” I mumbled, hearing some classmates snicker. “Deadeye, living up to the name,” sneered my bully, Jackson. “That’s enough, Jackson,” the teacher cut in, moving on with the math problems.
Finally, the bell rang for break, and I slipped into the hallway to grab my backpack, eager to escape to my secret spot. “Look who it is: Multi herself,” Jackson continued his taunts. “look I don’t want to deal with this today,” I said, but then I saw something strange out of the corner of my eye.
It looked like a creature I’d never seen before—sharp teeth, an odd body shape, glitching in and out while looking like a shadow. Just then, I heard someone behind me say, “Maybe if she focused this much in class, she wouldn’t be failing.” Focus—that’s what I needed. I concentrated on one spot, and suddenly everything around me sharpened; I could hear and smell things intensely.
Then I noticed a sound coming from the strange creature. I turned away from Jackson and his friends, feeling drawn closer and closer to the noise, twisting my head to catch every little detail. It slipped into the girls’ bathroom, and before I knew it, I followed, surprised by how quiet I could be.
The creature moved slowly, almost like it was hurt or lost. Once it reached the last bathroom stall, it stopped. Suddenly, another shadowy figure rushed in, and just like that, it vanished. The newcomer seemed to say, “Chill, I’m not going to hurt you; he’s from a different time.” Somehow, I understood, However, it was speaking in a language that didn’t quite exist, yet I understood.
“Nope, I’m not dealing with this alien stuff. I’m going home,” I decided, slipping out of the bathroom without bothering to log out at the front desk. The last time I tried too well it didn’t turn out well.
When I got back to my tiny apartment—one bathroom, a small kitchen, and a living room that also served as my bedroom—I dove straight into figuring out what had just happened. Was this some hidden corner of the world that few people ever see? I doubted it; I was probably just losing my mind. After wrestling with those thoughts for a while, I shifted my focus to my night job, leaving the mysteries behind for another time.
