Praying

Emi had searched most of the school before it occurred to her to check the rooftop. Lots of people usually went there to be alone, maybe the idea popped into his head as well.

The sun was beginning its slow descent, casting long orange streaks across the sky and down onto the stairs where Emi was ascending. The world felt quieter up here, almost detached, like a moment trapped in glass.

And there he was.

Sitting alone on the bench, his back to her, Orion faced the horizon where the campus ended and the world began. His eyes were closed, hands resting on his knees, lips moving in a whisper she couldn’t hear. It wasn’t just meditation.

He was praying.

A quiet speechless feeling crawled up Emi’s spine, to see a so-called creature of the dark humble himself into a prayer. How could this be? The nature of the frog was to be trusting, and the nature of the scorpion was to sting. How could a wolf grow a sheep’s wool on its back? And how could a bear learn to mourn the dead fish it had eaten?

She stood still, watching him from a distance for a while, not wanting to interrupt. The heavy silence was eerily still. She did not know how long he had been up here doing this, at a certain level, approaching seemed like a bad idea.

Finally, she stepped forward, her footsteps soft on the concrete. Orion opened his eyes before she spoke, as though he'd already sensed her presence.

“You finally found this place,” Emi said, trying to break the tension.

Nodding his head, he signaled for her to take a seat.

“I didn’t know that you pray.”

Another nod, he replied:

“God watches, so of course I pray.”

“Huh…”

A pause filled the air as he continued looking past the buildings and treetops, past the clouds, past where any human eye should be able to see.

Finally speaking, he asked her:

“Tell me something, do you know what I will do when I get my powers back?”

Emi blinked, thinking about the question for a bit, focusing on how he said ‘when’ rather than ‘if.’ It was deeply unsettling, like a spider crawling onto her back.

Orion grew quiet, not even letting her answer, as if simply wanting her to think about it for a moment.

“Any ordinary mortal, seeing a wounded god like me, would’ve done something about it. It could’ve been their chance at glory, power, or in Terran’s case, he would’ve killed me. But you… you’re not like that.”

Looking back at her, only to see her trying to figure what it was exactly that he was saying. Was he actually thanking her? She thought to herself. Perhaps this was how he did it, in his own special… weird way.

Turning his head toward the fence where the sun was setting, he murmured once again:

“So many kingdoms – France. Germany. India. America. They will all bow to me.”

A cold chill passed through Emi, with many thoughts shooting through her head, quietly shocked at the clarity he was speaking. The way he was slowly adapting to this world, having learned the names of those countries. But…

There was no way he could be looking that far.

Unless…

She followed his gaze, but saw only the sky. For him, it must have stretched further. thousands of miles away, all at once.

Another one of his powers had returned.

And she hadn't even realized it until now.

Another school day passed by. And here, the two of them walked home together on the quiet streets once more. Their footsteps echoed against the pavement, blending with the hum of cicadas and the distant buzz of traffic.

Having gotten dinner from the convenience store, Orion marveled at this new foreign Earth food.

“Sushi, you say,” he inspected the piece of rice and fish.

“It’s kind of gross,” Emi admitted, “but in a good way. You’ll love it, I promise. If you don’t, I’ll run three laps around the city.”

Sniffing the fish, he gave it a little taste, chucking the whole thing into his mouth. And after a couple of chews, he finally realized:

“This is raw,” but still chewing.

“Well, how is it?” Emi raised an eyebrow.

“Well… hmm… I think… you won’t have to run that city lap after all.”

“Oh yeah! That’s what I’m talking about,” pumping her fist into the air, she laughed while also eating her portion of dinner.

But just as she was reaching for another piece, a faint skittering sound caught her attention. Looking up, she saw it.

There, across the sidewalk, a stray dog had wandered out from the alley. It was small and wiry, with reddish fur and a limp tail. Nothing unusual at first glance. Its eyes were glossy, its tongue hanging from its mouth as it panted lightly.

Orion had already stopped chewing.

The dog stood still.

Then, without warning, its pupils glazed over, draining into a milky white, forcing its head to twitch.

A silent moment passed, freezing the air.

And then just like that, a loud crack echoed, revealing underneath – a second head.

One that sprouted from the side of its neck, splitting open like a horrible blooming flower. Its mouth hung open unnaturally wide, black foam spilling out.

Emi gasped as both heads jerked in unison.

One mouth began to retch. Stretching open wide.

A long, rattling noise echoed through the alley, just as a small, glinting blade fell out of its throat, to be held firmly in the grip of its sharp fangs.

The other mouth, shaking with strange rhythm, began to spit out something wet and heavy. And from its throat came not meat, not bile.

But a book.

Leather-bound. Ancient. Soggy with saliva, but whole. And just as the other mouth was holding onto the blade, this one held firm onto the book, being careful not to damage the outer leather layer of the book’s cover.

The dog stared at them, eyes glowing now.

Then, it smiled.

“MASTER!” it shouted in a guttural voice, its mouth somehow able to move despite the two objects still clenched between its teeth.

“Look, it’s me, Master! I’ve finally found you.”