The rate at which Adrian's heart pounded in his chest, made the other kids nervous state look like child's play.

  This was a turning point for all the kids, but for Adrian? It remained a crucial turning point figure that could as well decide how his future would turn out.

  Basically, Adrian could as well argue that this very moment was the deciding factor for the future that awaits him.

  Knowing how high the stakes were for Adrian, it caused him to panic much more than the other kids had.

  But at the very same time, Adrian knew better than to let his panic become evident to the eyes of the public.

  Out of the multitude that surrounded him, only a possible three... If he wasn't so hesitant to consider Mrs Gabe, Carrera's mother, Adrian would say that only a possible four wished the best for him.

  The rest on the other hand, want nothing than for him to failure. To see him break down. They want so desperately to see Adrian at his worst letdown, and that?... He could never grant them.

  For that reason alone, Adrian kept his chin upright and mounted the podium like a boss with nothing to be afraid of.

  Impressed, aunt Mira praised, "There you go, kiddo". She did it with a whispering tone that only her, and Carrera who was the closest by her side could hear.

  Carrera's eyes fixed on Adrian, anxiously. "Adrian". She muttered to herself, worriedly.

  Adrian faced what awaited him in silence. He placed his hand on the orb and, he waited...

  A second, nothing happened. Figured. The or probably needed a bit more time to process Adrian's origin. Being an Hybrid and all, it was normal for it not to respond as instantly as it did with the other kids.

  Adrian gulped sensing that five or so minutes had gone by without any changes in the orb.

  It was certified now? The orb doesn't acknowledge him as a Human, hence Adrian will not be awakening as a Human, hence he there was not going to be chances of him being a Bearer.

  "It's a failure, is it not?". A man in the crowd snuck in the comment.

  "What did you expect. He is not Human after all". Another brought it up.

  "Precisely. A Beast pretending to be a Human. Even the orb of awakening has confirmed it". Another said, almost amusingly.

  "Indeed, he is a monster not of our kind. An abomination that should be rooted out with immediate effect".

  The bashful comment rose up in murmuring order behind him. Adrian couldn't care for them. His focus was on the orb, and his hand that rested desperately on the orb.

  "Come on orb, come on". He voiced, pressing his hand harder, "Glow for. Why won't you glow!".

  Frustration was becoming evident in his tone.

  The overseer from the side, moved in to stop him, "Hey. Don't press on-"

  "Scram!". Adrian barked, abrupting shooting the man a death glare. His eyes burned brighter than it ever did, the innocent expression waned, replaced by a much more savage form that was unlike Adrian's calm face.

  He snapped his attention back to the orb, pressing his hand even harder, fiercer. Perhaps he wasn't placing it hard enough. That is probably why it's not working yet.

  Adrian is an Hybrid, one of two. He's part human so there is no way it wouldn't work for him, there's just no way.

  Using whatever excuses he could find, Adrian kept convincing himself as such as he desperately kept pushing and pushing and... Aunt Mira joined him on the podium.

  She had made her way with speed that nobody around her could follow. It was almost like she had appeared out of the thin air.

  Aunt Mira held his hand in place and called, "Adrian".

  He turned, raised his head to face her, "Aunt Mira. It's not working. The orb! It's not doing anything". He said to her.

  "The orb worked Adrian. Just as it was supposed to". Aunt Mira told, her heart saddened by the outcome.

  But this was an outcome that was predetermined. Adrian had been told. He should have expected just as much.

  And he did. Adrian really did prepare himself for this outcome. But as it turned out? He thought he was ready and strong enough withstand the outcome. But as it turned out, he wasn't.

  A tear managed to escape his eyes. He strolled down his cheek as he stared in disbelief.

  He was in the process of coming to term with his reality when he heard a faint giggle from behind him. Adrian's tiny thread of strong hood snapped.

  Even more so when he turned only to see everyone with a wide grin. They were laughing, amused. He saw their faces the expression of victory. In his sadness? They relished.

  Their happy faces broke Adrian's heart. And whatever shred of sanity the thirteen year old Goblin had... "Damned be you all!". He voiced, audibly.

  Their expressions turned from joy to shock. But Adrian wasn't done. "Every single one of you flesh bags, damned be you all". He voiced again.

  "Adrian-".

  "No, aunt Mira. Not this time". Adrian yanked his shoulder free of aunt Mira's palm. He wasn't done talking.

  Adrian walked forward to the edge of he podium. "You all hate me so much that my sadness brings you joy!". He addressed, "You despise me so much that in my down moments, you find your ups?!...". Adrian's eyes went bloodshot, "I say once more, all of you be damned".

  The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  "What!". One barked, "how dare you mon-".

  "Monster?". Adrian interrupted, "Beast. Freak. Abomination". He listed, anger fueling his every word. "To hell with all the names. To hell with all of you. Damned be you all". He cursed.

  Adrian was infuriated, and this was his moment to take it out. "Damn me if I care what I am called. Damn me if I am bothered by your opinion of me. I am Adrian". He slapped his chest, very hard, "Adrian Chase. I am freaking Adrian Chase, the hybrid". He proclaimed, boldly.

  "Say what you will, but I am human. There's an half of me that is human, so that too makes me human. Or wait". He paused, eyes wandered a bit, "Damned being Human". He says, with thought, "You are all humans, and what do you have to show for it?!...". He looked to the crowd in rhetoric act.

  "I have seen the lot of you curse at each other. Harbour hate toward one another. Looked at your neighbor with detestable gaze, yet you proclaim yourselves a noble, righteous race".

  Adrian scoffed. The irony brought a giggle to his face, "You lot are not noble, and you certainly are far from righteous". He looked at them. Silence prevailed before he resume, "I struggle to be accepted a Human, but that has been my mistake all along".

  Adrian looked at his own palm. A green and coarse skin tone. He reached for a bitter smile spread across his face.

  He was done trying to please anybody "Adrian Chase the Human?... Yeah right". He scoffed at the ridiculousness before he raised his face, straightened them forward, "I am Adrian El Durakai. Son of the full blooded Demi-kin, Gabon El Durakai". He muttered with a very loud proclamative affirmation in his words. "Before the lot of you hypocrite, I shed the Human half of me as I embrace my origin".

  He stood tall, proud with puffed out chest, "I am a Demi-kin... A Goblin. And damned will I be if attempt to choose otherwise".

  Smack! A stone came flying in from the crowd and hit Adrian straight on his forehead, "Back to the hole you crawled out of, Goblin!".

  "Right, be gone with you. We don't need a monster like you oin our midst".

  Murmurs flew around, each wanting the same thing of Adrian.

  Carrera in the crowd, exhaled a worried sigh as she clutched her dad's palm very tightly. She had never seen Adrian act in such manner before.

  "You want me gone? Fine by me. I am done living with you hypocrites anyway".

  Adrian marched down the podium stair in fury.

  "Hey. Adrian. Where are you off to". Aunt Mira chased after him.

  Adrian didn't listen to aunt Mira's call honing in from behind him. He hurried straight to the cabin, picked out a bag and started shoving his clothes into the bag.

  He was almost done packing went Aunt Mira walked in on him about to leave.

  "Adrian~ What do you think you are doing?".

  "I am leaving". He answered, his attention on the clothes he was packing.

  "Where to".

  "Anywhere that is not Degan. Didn't you hear? They don't want me in this town anymore".

  "So you are just going to leave, all by yourself?".

  He stood up to go to the next section of his clothing, "Can I not do that?".

  "For the God's sake, Adrian. You are thirteen".

  "I am well aware of what my age is, aunt uMira".

  "Good. That means you are aware how inappropriate it is running off by yourself".

  "I am not-". He hesitated, "I am not running off.".

  She folded her arms, "Explain to me then, what are you doing".

  That question? Adrian could answer very easily, "I am getting myself out of town".

  Her lashes wondered, "Are you listening to yourself right now? And stop packing, would you". She forced the clothing out of his hand, causing him to drop it.

  "I didn't awaken, aunt Mira". Adrian voiced out, finally giving her the attention, "Every other kid that came before me, they awakened a soul stone, some even as a Bearer. Yet, I didn't awaken neither".

  His eyes were red. It was anger mixed with frustration, "You always told me the one thing that makes me special is because I am one of two worlds". He laughed it off, "The awakening orb proved you wrong". He told to her, "I didn't awaken a soul core that was supposed to be prove of my heritage".

  His heart ached, "I thought I was one of both, but it turns out?... I don't even know who I am. I don't even know what my path is".

  "Its just like they said, I am a freak. An abomination of nation that doesn't belong to any world". The pain hid behind his fierce and harsh tone.

  Deeper than he knew, Aunt Mira understood him, "So what, you are just going to leave it all and run? I raised you better than that, Adrian. You were meant to be a fighter who doesn't give up, so why are you giving up now".

  "Ridiculous". Adrian scoffed. "Sometimes, there's no shame in knowing when to quit. This is me understanding that".

  Adrian was done packing. He set out, or was about to set out when he was stopped by aunt Mira pulling his bag.

  "Do you even understand how dangerous it is out there?". Her tone softened up, different from the earlier harsh approach.

  "Anywhere is better than a place that condemns me for what I am".

  She sensed his determination to keep to his words, "Fine then, I will come with-".

  "No, aunt Mira". Adrian stopped her. Her brow raised with a question mark?... Adrian narrowed it down, "You come with me and then what?...". He asked, not really expecting an answer, "This is something I need to do on my own. I want to break free of the prejudiced chain tying me down. To do that, I need to be alone".

  Adrian was tired of getting judged over and over and over again. He didn't ask to be born a Hybrid, yet he seems to get awfully criticized for what he has no control over.

  What Adrian intends, is to develop a state of mind that would steel his resolve hard enough that he would never again get bothered by others opinion of him.

  Adrian knew he would never achieve that with aunt Mira there to always be there for him.o

  This was something he needed to do alone, if ever he is to grow from it.

  Aunt Mira connected with his resolve, "you will die out there".

  "A risk I am willing to take". Firmly, so he answered.

  She stared, long and hard to build enough suspence. Then she sighed... "You are indeed your mother's child".

  Aunt Mira couldn't forget the time her elder sister, Sarah Chase. When she also abandoned the family in hopes of venturing the world. At the end of the day, she came back home with the infant Adrian, left him to Mira's care only to run back out into the world, far from Mira's reach.

  "Fine". Aunt Mira gave in, "But if you are going to be venturing out into the world, you need proper defense".

  By that, she didn't mean the wood sticks he used for training. Aunt Mira quickly made her way to the room and shortly after, she came back out holding a sheated long sword.

  "Here. You will need this bad boy on the dangerous steps you are about to embark on".

  He hesitated, facing in her direction, "Aunt Mira, I can't-".

  "Adrian". She called, the last person Adrian wanted to see now.

  Adrian gulped with a slow turn toward the newly arrived. "Car". He called, anxious.

  Carrera took a quick glance of his appearance, "Why are you carrying a bag, Adrian". An anxious fear was evident in her eyes.

  "Carrera I-".

  "No!". She said, moving in closer to trap him in her embrace, hands wrapped around his waist.

  Adrian never calls her Carrera. The only instances he did so is when he's about to do something that hurts her. Not the playful hurt, but the real type.

  "Aunty Mira, tell Adrian to return his bag. Is it not weird that he's carrying one as though he is going somewhere". She narrated, still keeping Adrian's body in her embrace.

  Aunt Mira couldn't bring herself to explain. She simply looked away from Carrera's expectant face.

  Adrian gulped. Of all the people, Carrera was the hardest one to talk to. But he had to do this.

  "Car". He called again, silently.

  "No Adrian, you can't. I won't let you". She insisted, pulling at his form even tighter.

  "I have to, Car".

  "You don't. No, no, you don't". She wasn't willing. She wouldn't let him go that easily.

  Adrian needed to make her understand. He lightly placed both hands on each side of her head and pulled her back, gently.

  "Listen to me, Car". He says, slowly, "Three years from now, we will see again". He mentioned, "The Crusader enlistment that will commence in the capital of Edagon, I will be there. And we will see again. But until then, I really need to go".

  He pulled her off of him, accepted the sword from aunt Mira and took off.

  Carrera tried to stop him, but she was held down by her mother who ensured her daughter stayed tightly with her.

  All the while, Adrian never turned back. To do so is to fester second thoughts, and he didn't need that right now.

  Adrian choosing to venture out of the village didn't mean he's giving up being a Crusader. He's not. But likewise, it has been made clear to him that his path is not as easily discerned as it is for the full blooded humans.

  This is him doing what he has to, being the Hybrid born that he is.