JiuGo: Shadow Of Nero

By JT Tenacity

A shadow is cast over the peaceful town of Greystains when an explosion at the Factory throws life into chaos.
Marcus joins jiu-jitsu class with no idea of how hard it would be, how much he would suck and how much he would love it.
Alana discovers the power of her true voice and finds a hidden treasure that will change her fate. Maro must reclaim his power to battle his own kind to save JiuGo's life. JiuGo goes on a dangerous mission in search of answers when his father goes missing, which leaves him changed forever. They must all unite and use their unique skills and abilities to save the town from the dark force that controls it, before it's too late.

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookBaby
• Release date: Dec 21, 2023
• ISBN: 9798350931853

Book preview

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© 2023 J.T. Tenacity. All rights reserved.

ISBN 979-8-35093-184-6 (Print)

ISBN 979-8-35093-185-3 (eBook)

No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law.

This book is dedicated to:

My mother Jillian Tomlinson

who taught me to be passionate, to love books and to fight for what I believe.

To my father Sam Tomlinson

who taught me determination, hardwork and how to make words meaningful.

Contents

Chapter 1: Dark Visions

Chapter 2: Game Theory

Chapter 3: Small-Town Girl

Chapter 4: No More Jiu-jitsu

Chapter 5: Smoke and Shadows

Chapter 6: The Other Side

Chapter 7: Shock and Awe

Chapter 8: The Cure

Chapter 9: Trashed

Chapter 10: Welcome Home

Chapter 11: Assembly

Chapter 12: Storming the Castle

Chapter 13: Extinguished

Chapter 14: Game of Mercy

Chapter 1:

Dark Visions

As he walked down the empty street, JiuGo had an eerie feeling. There were no cars, no people, and no sounds. The stillness was hot and heavy; he felt he shouldn’t make a sound. The scrape of his heavy school shoes on the road was amplified. In the distance, through the blur of the heat haze on the horizon, a small figure moved quickly towards him. The colourful speck morphed into Alana Reid riding her bike at top speed in a bright floral dress, her frizzy blonde hair blowing behind her. She skidded to a halt directly in front of JiuGo and yelled at him, but he couldn’t hear anything. It was as if someone had pressed the mute button. She stepped towards him and continued to scream, pointing behind her – she looked scared.

There was a rush of air. Shoowm! Maro appeared on Alana’s bicycle seat.

Maro! What are you doing here? said JiuGo.

Something is coming, my human friend. The young girl is warning you.

How come you can hear her, but I can’t? This is super weird! Why are you sitting on her bike?

JiuGo started sweating with a growing sense of fear.

I’m sitting here because this transportation’s pelvis support is quite comfortable. I believe the confusion of this situation is directly your fault, Mr Belle, as it is occurring in your subconscious. I think you humans refer to these as dreams.

JiuGo was shocked. Alana pulled him in close by his collar, nose to nose. Her lips moved, and then she paused and kissed him firmly on the mouth. It felt like it lasted a long time, and JiuGo melted. Alana pushed him away and jumped back on her bike.

The ground shook, and a figure as big as a building lumbered towards them like a tyrannosaurus rex. It was a giant Marcus.

Each step felt like an earthquake.

Alana, JiuGo, and Maro couldn’t move.

Hey, Maro, if this is my dream, why can’t I control it or do anything? Also, how did you get into my dream? JiuGo asked.

This thought was lost as the lumbering Marcus swooped in, gathering Alana in his massive hand.

It was at this point everything seemed to happen in slow motion. Marcus looked scared; he wasn’t running at them he was running away from something. He mouthed a single word, but JiuGo couldn’t make it out. He turned his head to see what the big guy was running from.

What did he say, Maro?

Run! He is telling you to run!

A massive dark figure rose above the horizon, casting a shadow across the entire valley. The temperature dropped to zero, and a deathly chill froze the air.

JiuGo tried to run, but fear squeezed him by the heart. He knew he needed to get away from the dark figure looming towards them.

Maro floated beside JiuGo.

I shall go now, my human friend. See you when you become conscious.

Shoowm! Maro was gone in a gust of wind.

Abandoned and terrified, JiuGo felt like he was sprinting on the spot. He kept glancing over his shoulder.

The figure looked like a monster in a suit and tie. Its evil eyes glowed yellow while its talon-like hand reached out. The ground froze, and JiuGo’s feet stuck, frost spreading up his legs, snap-freezing him solid, his head turned towards his impending doom.

The landscape darkened under the storm of the colossal figure. JiuGo somehow knew that face, the terrible eyes glinting with bad intentions.

Like a tsunami, the gigantic hand reached in and crashed over JiuGo!

Huuuuuh! JiuGo woke with a gasp, chest pounding, his pyjamas soaked in sweat.

Maro sat calmly on the end of the bed.

Well, that was something different. You appear to be experiencing a fluid malfunction. Do you require repairs? How did you escape? Maro seemed amused.

JiuGo tried to catch his breath.

Alana and Marcus! Where did they go? I knew the face of that shadow man. He was so familiar but so scary!

Perhaps your mental processes are trying to tell you something?

I’ll ask you to say out of my dreams in future, thank you, Skelly Bones. Dreams are very private thoughts! I wish to keep them that way. What a fat lot of help you were anyway.

A Reaper does not know the workings of a human mind, but when you are in a state of unconsciousness, I will sometimes focus my attention and visit you. It feels like moving through the Spectrum. To state it plainly, JiuGo, it’s more interesting to see what’s eventuating in your brain than sitting on the end of your resting platform until you are conscious again.

JiuGo blushed. What other dreams had Maro seen?

There was a strange sensation when that giant, dark figure appeared. What entity was that? Maro struggled to explain his feelings. It brought a chill to my bones like only my father could. It actually made me feel …

Afraid! Yeah, I know. Even Marcus looked scared and ran. Who would he be scared of? And you, Mr Houdini, disappearing on me right when I was in trouble! You could have stuck around and helped me out. JiuGo was mad.

Those images and experiences were just creations of chemical reactions inside your skull. I was simply visiting. Nothing I could do, really. It was not in my interest to see you be eaten by your own imaginary shadow monster.

It wasn’t a monster. It was a man in a suit. I swear I’ve seen his face before. It’s just, it’s just … gone! Maro, I don’t have a good feeling about this.

Maro looked worried. Neither do I, my fleshy friend.

JiuGo wasn’t sure what scared him more, the dream or Maro’s fear.

Chapter 2:

Game Theory

The day Marcus walked into Miss Michelle’s Brazilian jiu-jitsu class was a shock to everyone except JiuGo.

Miss Michelle was on high alert at the sight of the hulking young man, having witnessed his many cruel acts at school. Suspecting he was there to cause trouble she was not her usual warm and welcoming self.

What do you want here, Marcus? Miss Michelle asked. Only people who want to learn and be nice to each other can train here. Do you understand?

Miss Michelle and Marcus were both Brazilian; Marcus’s father was from the far north, and Miss Michelle was from the south.

I heard that this is where, uh, there are some Joo-Jitsoo classes or something like that?

JiuGo ran over to welcome him.

Oh hey, Marky Mark. You’ve come to learn the gentle art. He laughed a little too hard and tried to high-five Marcus, who left him hanging.

Miss Michelle looked surprised at JiuGo’s friendly attitude towards Marcus, knowing the boys’ histories.

What am I supposed to do? I feel stoopid. You all have pyjamas on. What am I supposed to wear?

JiuGo turned to Miss Michelle and shrugged his shoulders.

Maybe there’s a spare one for you. Not sure if we have one in juggernaut size. Ha-ha!

There was no laughter from Marcus.

So you want to learn jiu-jitsu, hey, big boy? Miss Michelle said. First thing, no shoes on the tatami. And to show respect, bow before coming onto the tatami.

Miss Michelle was cautious but always prepared to include new people in her class. She was concerned for the wellbeing of her other students; there had never been a student that size before, with the exception of Mr Murasaki.

Oh, I think we have an old judo gi donated by Mr Murasaki that should fit.

It was huge, almost like a dressing gown made of tough, woven cotton, and hung over the pull-up bar in the corner. Miss Michelle yanked it down, creating a dust avalanche, and handed it to Marcus.

Here you are. Try this and look through the lost property box for a belt.

She pointed to a box in the far corner of the room. She was reluctant for him to join, but her instincts told her that something was different about Marcus now. He seemed more awkward, more innocent.

Stoopid Joo-Jitsoo, he muttered to himself. He approached the mess and tangle of the lost property box.

Ew, yuck! Marcus gagged. It stank like dirty feet, tuna cans, and bad milk. He held his nose and plunged his arm into the dusty mess, digging around for a belt. He found a tattered old white belt with a tinge of pink to it. He paused at the edge of the mats, he tossed the oversized jacket over his shirt and fixed the belt into a knot and kicked off his shoes.

What do I do now? His belt was tied wrong, and the old gi looked loose and messy.

JiuGo stopped his drills and motioned for him to bow.

Marcus looked doubtful but tried to mimic JiuGo.

All this martial arts BS! You don’t hafta bow at boxing class. It’s all mystic crap, he muttered to himself.

Miss Michelle looked around the room. Everyone was paired up, and the only people left were Mr Murasaki, a human tank, and Adam Tallman, who was six-foot-six but had no strength, like a wet noodle. The class was divided into two main groups: kids and adults. None of the athletic, popular kids did jiu-jitsu; they played football. That’s why Marcus presented a problem for her.

With me, Marcinho. I will teach you a private lesson. Today, you’re going to learn to fall safely. She signalled to Mr Murasaki to lead the class and took Marcus aside.

Marcus’s face screwed up in a mixture of disbelief and disgust.

Miss Michelle was not going to tolerate his insolence. Listen here, kid. You must learn this to stay safe on the mat. You will soon see why.

Marcus shrugged and tried to follow along. Miss Michelle demonstrated perfect break falls with gymnastic form, landing lightly each time. But for Marcus, they were heavy falls! Thud! Thud! Thud! Marcus’s face flushed with embarrassment, and his back and butt were now tender. He grew more and more impatient.

What is the point of all this crap?

If you don’t learn to fall, you won’t be able to stand, okay?

When do I get to learn to choke someone?

You wanna choke somebody, do you? Try to choke me. I invite you to try.

The whole class stopped and turned to watch.

What? Nah, I don’t wanna hurt you, miss.

Miss Michelle motioned for him to attack her.

I think you’re scared of me, Marcus. Come on, try your best. I dare you.

The magic words had been spoken. Miss Michelle stood confidently, hands on hips and a relaxed posture.

Marcus glanced over at JiuGo, who smiled and nodded enthusiastically.

Come on, Marky. Bet you can’t even do it.

Marcus cringed at JiuGo calling him by that stupid name. He felt the class’s attention focused upon him like a