Shadows of the Renegade Freshman

Fifteen-year-old Erebus wants nothing more than to blend into the background of Neo-Veridia High. He sleeps through lectures, never smiles, and hides a lethal mastery of stealth and hand-to-hand combat beneath a baggy hoodie. Driven by the trauma of watching his family erased by the city's authoritarian regime, his entire existence is anchored to his only two friends: Luke, a calm, sword-wielding, emotionally wise anchor, and Meelo, a fiercely loyal but utterly reckless idiot. Erebus would gladly die to keep them safe. But when a routine school physical triggers a dormant cybernetic tracker in his blood, the ruthless Sector Peacekeepers deploy to hunt him down. To protect his found family, Erebus must abandon the shadows, weaponize his deadly training, and lead his friends into a high-tech underground rebellion. Survival means choosing between staying hidden or burning the corrupt establishment to the ground to keep those he loves alive.