Orion woke at 5:30 AM. His enhanced body didn't need much sleep anymore—four hours was enough. The breathing technique kept his cells energized and refreshed.
He sat up, went through a cultivation session. Thirty minutes of focused breathing. Exotic energy circulating through his system. His body expelled more dark impurities—less than before. He was getting cleaner at the cellular level.
After a shower, he headed downstairs. 6:15 AM. The apartment was quiet. Cassia and Nyla still asleep.
"Rene," Orion said, putting on the earbuds. "Breakfast time. Something quick but impressive. We have eggs, bread, vegetables, cheese, and some leftover ingredients from yesterday."
"Analyzing available ingredients," Rene said. "I recommend a fusion-style breakfast: Japanese-French hybrid. Tamagoyaki-inspired rolled omelets with herb-infused filling, artisan toast with compound butter, roasted vegetables with miso glaze, and a light soup."
"Sounds good. Guide me through it."
The holographic overlays appeared in his vision. Orion moved through the kitchen like a professional chef—because he had a professional guide literally showing him every movement.
Crack eggs here. Whisk with this motion. Heat pan to exactly 165°C. Pour egg mixture in this pattern. Roll at these intervals.
The tamagoyaki came out perfect. Layered, fluffy, golden. He plated three portions with precise garnishes.
Toast sliced at optimal thickness. Compound butter—herbs and garlic mixed into softened butter—spread in decorative patterns.
Vegetables roasted with miso glaze. The umami-rich coating caramelized beautifully.
Soup—a light miso-based broth with delicate vegetables. Served in elegant bowls with careful garnish placement.
By 7:00 AM, breakfast was ready. Three place settings at the table, each with a complete meal that looked like it came from a high-end restaurant.
Orion heard movement upstairs. Cassia's alarm going off.
He sat down with his phone, scrolling through news while waiting.
Cassia appeared fifteen minutes later, already dressed for the day. She stopped when she saw the table.
"You did it again," she said.
"Morning, Mom. I figured I'd practice."
"Practice. Right." She sat down and immediately took a bite of the tamagoyaki. Her eyes closed. "This is unfair. How am I supposed to go back to normal food after this?"
"You could learn to cook like this too."
"No. Some of us have jobs. We don't have time to become master chefs overnight."
Orion smiled. If only she knew it took him less than an hour with Rene's guidance.
They heard the front door open. Footsteps in the hallway.
Nyla appeared in the doorway, looking exhausted. Hair messy, eyes half-closed, wearing the same clothes from yesterday. She'd clearly pulled an all-nighter finishing her group project.
She stopped. Sniffed the air. Her eyes widened.
"Food," she said. "Real food. Oh my god, I'm starving."
She didn't ask who it belonged to. Didn't ask permission. Just grabbed the third plate and started eating.
The first bite hit her like a revelation.
Nyla's eyes went wide. She froze mid-chew, processing what she was tasting.
Then she swallowed and immediately took another bite. And another.
"Oh my God," she said through a mouthful of food. "This is so delicious. It feels like a heavenly meal. Who made this? Did you hire a chef? Did you order from that expensive place downtown?"
Orion and Cassia both started laughing.
Nyla looked between them, confused. "What? What's funny?"
"Your brother made it," Cassia said.
Nyla stopped eating. Looked at Orion. Looked at the food. Back to Orion.
"You made this."
"Yeah."
"You. Orion Starr. Who burned ramen last month. Made this."
"That's correct."
"I don't believe you."
"Believe it," Cassia said. "I had the same reaction yesterday when he made dinner. Apparently our son is now a master chef."
Nyla took another bite, slower this time, really analyzing the flavors. "This is... this is restaurant quality. No, better than restaurant quality. The flavor balance is perfect. The textures are ideal. The presentation is..." She gestured at the artfully arranged plate. "How?"
"Good instructions," Orion said simply.
"From who?"
"A very talented teacher."
Nyla squinted at him suspiciously but didn't push. She was too busy eating.
They sat together, finishing breakfast. Nyla devoured everything on her plate and looked longingly at the kitchen, clearly considering getting more.
"There's extra in the kitchen," Orion said.
Nyla practically ran to get seconds.
Cassia sipped her tea, looking amused. "Your sister hasn't had real food in three days. She's been living on vending machine snacks and printed protein bars."
"The group project was that bad?"
"Apparently. She texted me last night. They finally finished."
Nyla returned with a heaping second plate. "I'm never doing group projects again. Three days. Three days of people arguing about methodology while I did all the actual work."
"You get it done?" Orion asked.
"Yeah. Submitted this morning at 5 AM. Then I came straight home." She took another bite. "And walked into whatever this miracle is. Seriously, Orion, where did you learn to cook like this?"
"He won't tell me either," Cassia said. "Just says he has good instructions."
"That's not an answer."
"It's the only answer I'm giving."
Nyla gave him a look but let it drop. She was too tired and too hungry to interrogate him properly.
While they ate, Cassia pulled out her tablet. "Speaking of mysterious developments, I should update you both on yesterday's progress."
"Progress?" Nyla asked.
"With the company."
"What company?"
Cassia and Orion exchanged glances.
"Oh boy," Orion said. "You really have been out of the loop."
"What are you talking about?"
Cassia set down her tea. "Nyla, your brother is now a billionaire who owns a major technology company. Also we're buying a mansion and several cars."
Nyla stopped chewing. Stared at her mother. Then at Orion.
"What."
"It's true," Orion said. "I developed some advanced AI technology and made a lot of money from it. Started a company called Innovatia. Mom's the CEO."
"You're joking."
"Not joking."
"Prove it."
Orion pulled up his banking app. Turned the screen toward her.
Account Balance: 30,847,293,112 credits
Nyla's jaw dropped. "That's... that's thirty billion credits."
"Yup."
"How."
"AI technology. Stock market investments. Business deals. It's been a busy couple weeks."
Nyla looked at Cassia. "Mom, is this real?"
"Very real. I spent yesterday handling company business and looking at properties. Found a beautiful mansion in the Northern Hills district. Twelve bedrooms, home theater, swimming pool, full security system. Already purchased it. We move in next week."
"Twelve bedrooms?"
"We're going to need the space. We'll have house staff, guest rooms for business associates, home offices. It's actually practical."
"Practical," Nyla repeated faintly. "A twelve-bedroom mansion is practical."
"When you have thirty billion credits, yes."
Cassia pulled up her tablet notes. "Anyway, yesterday's progress. I finalized the transfer of the office building. Innovatia now officially has a headquarters in New Eden's commercial district. Twelve floors, fully equipped."
She scrolled through her notes. "I also brought in some trusted colleagues from my previous workplace. People I've worked with for years who I know are competent and reliable."
"Who?" Orion asked.
"Mariana Vasquez—she'll be VP of Engineering. Brilliant systems architect, fifteen years experience. Thomas Kim for VP of Marketing—he's creative and understands tech sector positioning. Rachel Brennan as Head of HR—she's excellent at recruitment and culture building. David Martinez for CFO—sharp financial mind, impeccable integrity. Lisa Hammond as Head of Operations—she can manage complex logistics like nobody else. And James Park as Legal Counsel—thorough, careful, knows tech law inside and out."
"That's six people," Orion said. "Plus you as CEO. Good executive team."
"They're all excited. I didn't tell them everything—just that Innovatia is developing revolutionary software and I need people I trust to help scale up. They said yes immediately."
"Because you're offering ridiculous salaries?" Nyla guessed.
"Because I'm offering good salaries, stock options, and the chance to be part of something transformative. Also yes, the compensation is very competitive."
Cassia continued. "They're already working. Mariana is coordinating with the engineering teams. Thomas is developing our marketing strategy. Rachel is setting up recruitment pipelines—we'll need to hire at least fifty developers in the next month. David is establishing financial systems and controls. Lisa is handling office logistics. James is reviewing all our contracts and intellectual property filings."
"You did all that in one day?" Orion asked, impressed.
"I made calls, sent offers, and they mobilized fast. Good people move quickly when given the opportunity." Cassia smiled. "Oh, and I bought the house."
"Which one?"
"The Northern Hills property I showed you the listing for. Mansion with the view overlooking the city. It's perfect. Wired for smart systems, plenty of space, good security infrastructure. We can move in next week—they're doing final cleaning and systems checks now."
"And cars?"
"Ordered three. Two luxury autocars for daily use, one sporty manual-drive for fun. They'll be delivered directly to the mansion garage."
Nyla was just staring at both of them. "This is insane. Three days ago we lived in a normal apartment. Now we're buying mansions and running a billion-credit company?"
"Thirty-billion-credit company, technically," Orion corrected.
"That doesn't make it less insane!"
"Fair point."
Cassia checked her tablet again. "I also have the recruitment team posting job listings today. Software developers, AI specialists, UX designers, QA testers. We're offering top-tier compensation packages. I expect we'll get flooded with applications."
"When are we launching Aether OS publicly?" Orion asked.
"Thomas suggests two weeks. Gives us time to build hype, prepare marketing materials, set up distribution channels. He's working with media teams and advertisers to coordinate the launch."
"Two weeks works. The OS is ready. We just need to handle the business side."
"Exactly. Which is why I'm handling the business side while you handle..." Cassia gestured vaguely. "Whatever genius tech stuff you do."
Nyla set down her fork. "Okay. I need to understand this better. Orion, what exactly did you invent?"
"An advanced operating system. It's called Aether OS. Runs faster than anything currently available, has integrated AI assistants, includes a massive app ecosystem. Revolutionary software."
"Can I see it?"
"Actually, yeah." Orion pulled out his phone. "I'll install it on your devices right now."
"You can do that remotely?"
"Yup. Give me your phone and tablet."
Nyla handed them over. Orion connected to Rene through the BCI.
"Rene, install Aether OS on Nyla's devices. Include the scientific module—she's studying bioengineering, so make sure she has access to all the biological research tools."
"Understood," Rene replied through the earbuds. "Installation beginning."
Nyla's phone and tablet screens went dark. Progress bars appeared.
Installing Aether OS...Transferring files...Optimizing systems...
Two minutes later, both devices rebooted. New interfaces appeared—sleek, fast, intuitive.
"There you go," Orion said, handing them back.
Nyla unlocked her phone. Her eyes widened immediately. "This is... wow. Everything is so smooth. And there are like a hundred new apps."
"The app ecosystem. Productivity tools, creative software, games, everything. All integrated with AI assistance."
Nyla opened the app store. Scrolled through hundreds of applications. "This is professional-grade software. Photo editing, video production, 3D modeling... and they're all free?"
"Part of the OS package. We're monetizing through premium features and business licenses, not by nickel-and-diming individual users."
She opened one of the creative apps. An AI assistant appeared immediately. "Hello, Nyla. I'm here to help with your photo editing. What would you like to create?"
"It knows my name?"
"Personalized AI. It learns your preferences and adapts to your workflow."
Nyla was exploring rapidly now, opening different apps, testing features. "The response time is instant. No lag at all. How is it this fast?"
"Optimized programming. We rebuilt everything from the ground up for maximum efficiency."
She opened her tablet. Found the scientific module. "What's this?"
"Research tools. Since you're in bioengineering, I included the scientific module. It has simulation software, data analysis tools, AI-assisted research capabilities. Should help with your studies."
Nyla opened the module. Her jaw actually dropped.
"This is... this is more advanced than the software we use in the university labs. Molecular modeling, genetic sequencing simulation, protein folding prediction... and it runs on a consumer tablet?"
"Yeah. The algorithms are really efficient."
She opened a molecular modeling tool. Started building a protein structure. The AI assistant began suggesting optimizations. "This would normally take hours to calculate. It's doing it in real-time."
"Like I said. Revolutionary software."
Nyla looked up at him. Really looked. "Orion, this is... this isn't just good. This is going to change everything. Every researcher, every student, every professional who works with data—they're all going to want this."
"That's the plan."
"How did you build this?"
"Very carefully. With a lot of help from advanced AI and some extremely good programming."
She was still exploring the scientific module. Running simulations. Testing different tools. "The bioengineering module alone is worth thousands of credits. This software usually costs university departments millions. And you're just... giving it away?"
"Part of the base package. I want people to use it. The more people who have access to advanced tools, the faster humanity progresses."
Nyla set down her tablet and just stared at him. "Who are you and what did you do with my brother?"
Orion laughed. "Same person. Just... more capable now."
"That's an understatement."
Cassia stood up, collecting plates. "Alright, I need to get to the office. Lots to coordinate today. Nyla, you should rest—you look exhausted. Orion, whatever you're doing, keep doing it."
"Will do."
Cassia headed upstairs to grab her things.
Nyla was still staring at her tablet, scrolling through features. "This is insane," she muttered. "Completely insane."
"You'll get used to it."
"Will I?" She looked at him. "Three days. I was gone for three days. And everything changed. You're a billionaire. We're buying a mansion. You can cook like a professional chef. You've invented software that makes university research tools look primitive. What's next? Are you going to cure cancer? Build a spaceship?"
Orion thought about the fusion reactor currently being manufactured at the Innovatia research facility. About the full-dive VR system Rene was designing. About the cultivation techniques that would eventually let him live for thousands of years.
"Maybe," he said. "Give me a few months."
Nyla laughed. Then realized he wasn't joking. "Wait. You're serious."
"Let's just say I have ambitious plans."
She studied his face. "Something happened to you. After that accident. You changed."
"Yeah. I did."
"Good change or bad change?"
"Good change. Definitely good change."
Nyla nodded slowly. "Okay. I trust you. But Orion... be careful. Whatever you're doing, whatever this is... don't lose yourself in it. Promise me."
"I promise."
She stood up, grabbing her tablet. "I'm going to my room to explore this software properly. And then sleep for about twelve hours. When I wake up, we're having a longer conversation about... everything."
"Looking forward to it."
Nyla headed upstairs. Orion could hear her muttering to herself. "Billionaire brother. Fusion cuisine for breakfast. Revolutionary software. What's next, robot butlers?"
Orion smiled. "Rene, add 'robot butler' to the development queue. Priority: low. After robot chef."
"Acknowledged," Rene said. "Current queue: fusion reactor, full-dive VR, robot chef, robot butler."
"Perfect. Let's change the world, one impossible thing at a time."
He finished his breakfast and headed upstairs to prepare for the day.
The Innovatia research teams would be starting component manufacturing soon. He should check in on their progress.
But first, he needed to talk to Nyla properly.
That conversation they'd been putting off.
Time to figure out what they were to each other.