NOVEL NEXT Chapter 56: The Forgotten Star
The artificial night over Eternal Era Academy shimmered with streaks of neon-blue sky trains. Inside the team dormitory, most players were asleep, their minds busy replaying tactics and match footage. But one window still glowed faintly — Diego's.
He sat at his desk, a single holo-screen flickering before him, cycling through old match replays. His own highlights. Goals, assists, lightning-fast sprints down the flank. His younger self smiling, chest thumping proudly as crowds chanted his name.
"Diego! Diego! Diego!"
The echoes of those chants rang in his mind like ghosts.
He leaned back, rubbing his eyes. It had been two years since he'd heard that chant in real life. Two years since his name carried weight. Now, he was the backup forward — the forgotten man.
A soft ping from his holo-screen triggered another clip: his debut match for Eternal Era's junior team, back when he was just sixteen.
1. The Rise
The crowd was wild that day. Diego remembered the feel of his boots biting the turf, the smell of ozone in the air from the electric goal barriers, the way the stadium lights shimmered across his sweat.
Eternal Era Juniors vs. Lunar Vanguard. 89th minute. Score tied.
Jason — then assistant coach — shouted from the sideline, "Go for it, Diego! Show them what you've got!"
Diego sprinted, flames of determination burning in his eyes. He'd been born on the slums of Crescent-9 Colony, where children played football on cracked domes, their breath fogging in the thin atmosphere. His mother had worked triple shifts at a reactor plant just to buy him his first boots.
Now, this was his chance.
He cut past one defender, then another, his Aura Stream glowing like liquid amber. A perfect feint — a left twist, right kick — the ball spun through the gap and slammed into the top corner.
The crowd exploded.
He fell to his knees as teammates swarmed him, Jason smiling faintly from the bench. That goal had earned him a spot on the Rising Stars, the same academy team Blaze now played for.
For a while, Diego was unstoppable.
They called him "Solar Surge" — the boy who moved like sunlight breaking through clouds. He scored from impossible angles, assisted with blind passes, and had the kind of confidence that infected every teammate.
Reporters loved him. Scouts followed him. Even Jason once said, "If you keep this up, you'll make the senior team before you're twenty."
Diego was seventeen then. And he believed it.
2. The Fall
But football, like the galaxies themselves, was merciless to those who stood still.
The first setback came during the Intergalactic Youth Trials — a tournament that drew every top academy from across the Orion Belt. Eternal Era faced Titan Forge, a team known for their brutal defense.
Diego went in strong, eager to prove himself, but in the 62nd minute, a collision shattered his rhythm — and his confidence.
He twisted his knee on a mistimed landing. The medics rushed him off the pitch, pain searing through his body, but the real injury came later — in the silence.
Three months of recovery.Three months of watching from the sidelines.Three months of hearing the crowd chant someone else's name.
By the time he returned, things had changed. Jason had taken over as head coach. The younger players had stepped up. And among them was a lightning-fast striker named Blaze.
At first, Diego didn't mind. Blaze was talented, yes, but raw — unpredictable. Diego thought he'd mentor him, show him the ropes.
But Blaze's rise was meteoric. Every training, every scrimmage, he improved. His goals weren't just clean — they were spectacular. The kind fans never forgot.
Within weeks, Blaze had what Diego once had — attention, praise, chants.
And Jason's tone shifted. No longer patient, no longer encouraging. Just distant. Tactical. Cold.
One evening, after training, Diego overheard a conversation outside Jason's office.
"Blaze has potential," Jason said to the assistant coach. "He has what it takes to change games. Diego… he's reliable, but he's plateaued."
Plateaued.
The word hit harder than any tackle.
That night, Diego stared at himself in the mirror for hours. The same boots. The same body. The same fire — but nobody saw it anymore.
He tried harder in training. Faster runs, stronger strikes, cleaner passes. But the harder he tried, the more desperate he looked. His touch grew heavy, his instincts clouded by anger.
And then came the Solar Cup — Eternal Era vs. Iron Fists. Jason benched him.
"Coach," he protested, voice trembling. "I've played every Solar Cup since I joined the academy."
Jason's eyes were unreadable. "You'll get your chance again, Diego. For now, Blaze fits the system better."
Fits the system better.
That phrase echoed like poison.
Blaze went on to score twice in that match. The crowd went wild. Jason smiled. And Diego — for the first time in years — didn't feel like part of the team.
3. The Present
Now, staring at the screen, Diego could barely recognize the boy in those old replays.
He looked stronger, lighter, happier. He had fire in his eyes. Now, all Diego saw was exhaustion — the dull shadow of someone still running in place while everyone else flew ahead.
The hunters' words from the café replayed in his mind.
"We don't need betrayal. Just patience. When the time comes, you'll only need to act naturally."
He slammed his fist on the desk, the sound echoing off the walls. "Damn it!"
His anger wasn't truly at Blaze — not yet. It was at the system, the endless machine of rising stars and forgotten names. Every academy across the galaxy had thousands of players like him — good, not great. Skilled, not special.
He thought of his mother's call earlier that week:
"Mi hijo, you'll get back to the starting lineup soon, right? You just need to work harder."
He hadn't had the heart to tell her he was barely on the bench.
A knock on his door pulled him from his spiral. Scarlet peeked in.
"You still awake?"
"Couldn't sleep," Diego muttered.
She leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed. "You're thinking too loud again."
He gave a hollow laugh. "Yeah, guess I am."
Scarlet studied him a moment. "You were good today in drills. Fast, clean. Don't let your head mess that up."
"Thanks," he said quietly.
She shrugged. "Look, Blaze might be the new toy right now, but that doesn't erase what you've done. Keep working. You'll get your shot."
She left before he could reply. The door slid shut, leaving him alone again with his ghosts.
4. A Promise in the Dark
Later that night, Diego found himself on the rooftop. The air shimmered faintly with energy from the academy's barrier field. He stared up at the stars — millions of them, each representing a world he might never touch.
He clenched his fists. "I won't fade away," he whispered.
His Aura flickered faintly — a golden sheen that once burned bright.
"I'll prove I belong here. Even if it kills me."
Below, the stadium lights flickered on. The next day's match setup was already underway. Eternal Era vs. Solar Blades.
Somewhere deep inside the stands, unseen by any player, the two hunters watched the field through a cloaked drone feed.
The female hunter smiled faintly. "The cracks are showing. Soon, he won't need pushing."
Her partner grinned. "Good. Because once Blaze shines too bright… we'll snuff him out through the ones closest to him."
The drone camera zoomed in on Diego, still on the roof, unaware of the eyes watching him.
The forgotten star.The first pawn in their game.