CHAPTER ONE
"You know that food is not going to eat itself Sapphie?" Susan's voice snapped me back to reality. I couldn't help but be a little more concerned about the dream I had last night. Having violent dreams like my last night showcase had gradually become a reoccurring event with each dream getting more vicious, detailed and they all seem to share a mutual theme of ending with my death. Could they have been memories from a past life or am I for some reason getting memories from my alternate self in an alternate universe. Oh boy I guess all the long hours of reading fictional books and watching fictional movies are beginning to mess with my head.
"Sapphire! Food! School! You are going to be late if you keep staring into your plate." Susan sent me a questioning look filled with concern. "I'm sorry Aunt Susan; I am just having a bad morning." I took a spoon full of the cereal patiently waiting for my attention. "What seems to be the matter Sapphie, is it boys again?" Susan teased and got the pleasure of seeing my almost choke down my meal. "No, it's not boys; I'm too young to be concerned about boys." I said with an in your face look. Susan had been my aunt and friend for as long as I could remember. My parents died when I was just a year old in a freak car accident and luckily for my Susan my dad's only friend was baby siting me that night. She's been a both a mother and father figure to me, my sole guardian and friend, my true family. She made life fun and didn't put too much pressure on things, we'd go out to see a movie and if the crowd was too much, we'd go roller-skating instead. That is how easy going she takes life and I guess it rubbed off on me, which makes these reoccurring violent dreams of my demise really disturbing.
"So what is it then?" She took a seat next to me at the dining table. "I had a dream again." I let out with a sigh; I could almost see the color leaving Susan's face. "You mean the dreams where you end up dying?" She asked with more concern on her face and clearly in her voice. "Yes, that's the one and it's getting worse." Leaning close, she asked, "how so?" "Well they are becoming more vicious, detailed and very scary, I feel like something is wrong."
I said with a groan. "Oh baby Sapphie, don't say that, why don't you tell me about this one before you head off to school."
By the time I was done recounting the details of my staring appearance in the latest episode of run for your life dream, Susan was quiet for a moment and with considerable efforts smiled and shoved me off to school. She did mention that she was going to reach out to someone for help on how to put an end to these dreams. Well I hope it pans out well thought with as I rode to school in my bicycle. The breeze felt different this morning, like something off was in the air, like battery acid. My eyes caught the sight of a man standing in an alley by the corner, just looking at me like I was his long priced possession. Quite creepy
if you ask me, wondered what his deal was as I rode past him to school, though I couldn't but feel a slight shiver down the base of my neck.
School was not what it was for other kids, for me. To many of them it was either torture or a place to show up family wealth, move in groups or packs, whichever one they decided to go with. For me it was just a means to an end, I just wanted to pass through it and be done with it. So yes I didn't have any friends, I didn't need any and I'm pretty sure many of them thought of me as the weird lonely girl, but who the hell cares. A few years back, a couple of them tried to put me in their list of bulliable kids. Yes I know "bulliable" is not an actual word but you get the point, so walk with me. They settled on me on day during launch with the aim of making me feel low and making themselves feel good. One of them, Shelley grabbed my novel and one of her friends' poured fruit on my shirt when I tried to get my novel back. And how did I react to this situation you ask? I beat them up with the viciousness of an avenging angel. Now mind you, I nothing about self-defense, but these girls were way worse in the fighting or self-defense club, all they had was talk and a mean streak with no ounce of spine on them. So yes we all ended up at the principal's office and yes Susan was called. But unlike the scenes you see in high school movies, the principal was actually on my side. Yes she wasn't a fan of violence but she knew for a fact that I stayed away from interacting with people, so the sob story that the girls were relaying about me walking up to them to attack them must be a big fact lie. In the days following, I was now addressed as, "the lone wolf." Of course my sweet aunt Susan took me out for a treat that night.
Taking excuse to use the restroom was just a means to get out of Mr. Scott's history class which I could swear was designed to slowly bore the mind and soul to death. I opened the door to the toilet stall only to find what could only be described as unreal as it could only be seen in a movie. Standing before me on two feet was a wolf looking man thing bearing its fangs at me. Have you ever seen the movie "Underworld"? I mean the five chapter feature film of vampires and werewolves or as they were addressed in the movie, vampires and lycans. If you have then you will remember what the lycans looked like. Yes, all 7 foot tall, covered in furs and pure muscles, claws like daggers and fangs like a saber-toothed tiger. Well I'm certain with or without the movie memory; you'd get the picture I'm trying to paint. If this is a dream I thought to myself, then whatever divinity controlling dreams clearly had a serious issues with me because what the hell is this? This just moved action thriller to paranormal classic and by the heavens I am sick to the heavens tired of these dreams. It prepared to launch and I slid backwards, closing the door on reflex.
Running as fast as I could, I barged into the class, interrupting the already boring class. "Sapphire, are you alright? You look like the hounds of hell are after you." Mr. Scott asked in his almost musical voice. "Em...you could say that." I replied breathlessly making my way to my seat by the window. "I'm sorry for the interruption, please continue with the class." His lecture continues while I buried my head in my hands. His voice faded like a background noise as I thought to myself, what the hell is wrong with me? "Absolutely nothing." A husky voice chuckled in my head, I turned around but the class was quiet, kids
seemed to be either listening to Mr. Scott or about to drift off to sleep. "You can hear me? Now that makes things a whole lot interesting." The voice continued, I looked around but still could place how I could hear a voice in my head. Something made me look outside the window and there he was standing in the middle of the field, the same man that gave me the creepy look on my way to school this morning. And beside him were two lycan like creatures, he smiled croaked his head. "I have searched for you a long time little one, today I correct a decade's plus mistake." At his nod the lycans began to move towards the schools main building.
Without thinking, I grabbed bag and threw my notebook inside with one fluid movement and dashed out of the class. Standing in the hallway, I could hear their low growl. They were in the building I thought to myself, something had to be done. I reached for the emergency service point on the far end of the hall and pulled the fire alarm. I made my way towards the back stairs as the class doors opened and students began to hurry out. A loud scream told me that the lycans had been seen that, "I have to give it to you child, I am impressed but this is only slowing down the in evitable, I will correct the long awaited mistake." The voice boomed in my head and I could just as well feel the irritation in his voice. I made my way out of the out of the school building through the back and made a dash for the school gates. I could see other student running scattered in the field, some looked scared, some looked in shock, others were trying to assess the situation and some looked amused with the chaos. I could see the teachers and non-teaching staff trying to control the situation. Amidst all the chaos, I didn't see the man or his lycan friends which really had me worried.
They didn't see them, which was the single thought that ran through my head as I got close to the gates. Not everyone saw the lycans and now that the lycans seemed to have vanished, it will be termed as either mass hallucination or just high school kids acting out with their creative imagination. One thing I was sure of is that the man and those creatures were real and this was no dream. I ran through the now deserted gates onto the streets, I guessed the guard were off trying to settle the situation. "Shit!" I muttered to myself, I left my bike which was parked close to where the commotion was still happening. I heard a faint growl a few feet away and turned around; to my horror there they stood with the man grinning. With one nod in my direction, the lycans charged towards me. I ran in opposite direction with one single thought in my head, why didn't anyone on the street see them?
My path was blocked when Susan's SUV intercepted me; she flung the passenger door open. "Get in now! Come one Sapphie!" I didn't need to be told twice, I all but flew into the passenger's seat and Susan swerved, from the school curve like how a James Bond Character would drive. "What the hell is going on Aunt Sue? Can you see those things? How did you know I was in trouble?" She kept her eyes on the road while glancing at the rear mirror. "Answer to your first question is a lot is going on, but it's a long delicate story and this is the wrong time for it." She ran a light and continued moving with a 007 precision. "And to answer your second question, yes I can see those things, they are called shadow furies and they are part of the long story." "Shadow furies?" I asked, shocked beaming
through my voice. "Sounds like a fiction name to me Aunt Sue." She took a hard right with her leg heavy on the gas. "I wish it were, but it's not and to answer your third question, I sensed you which, yes weird I know, but that is also part of the long story, hold on." She brought her window down, looking hard at the rear mirror. I could still see them chasing us from the side mirror; Susan closed her eye for a moment, putting her left hand out the window. For a moment nothing happened when suddenly there was a burst of energy and both lycans were blown to bits. She pressed the gas hard like she was in a race for our life, which I guess when you think of it, we were.