Chapter 1 - Echoes*

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It was happening again.

Reyna stared at her open English book, but the words were giant balls of fuzz dancing on white paper. Her hands that tried to ease her throbbing temples were shaking. Her breathing sounded like sandpaper rubbing concrete.

She sighed and closed her eyes.

It was the last period of the day. She could get through this.

"What do you think of this story?" Miss Adin, the English teacher, asked. Her question evaporated into silence.

"...a Japanese legend, right, Miss Adin?" Someone's voice spoke through the fog in Reyna's mind.

"Yes, Eric. This fight between the demon and the demon hunter is considered a legend. A myth from long ago. This is one of the many more that are in the book we are going to start reading for the next two weeks," Miss Adin said.

"But I don't get it," Eric said. "The two stories we read don't really make sense. This one was about a demon hunter and the other was about two sisters fighting. Like, are they supposed to be connected?"

Reyna exhaled through her teeth. Eric needed to stop talking. Anything above a whisper was making her head pound.

"Well, they are and they aren't. Sakuya's Collection is an anthology of various legends that are believed to be vaguely connected to each other. They are all set in the same fictional world of warrior clans, magic, demons, and other things. Which brings me to your new set of notes I'd like you to copy."

The teacher placed the book cradled in her arms down on her desk and turned to the whiteboard where she began to scribble words in headache inducing blue ink. The room filled with the static noise of students taking out writing supplies. Reyna's open spiral was already on her desk, but the rising tension building against her forehead prevented her from picking up her pen.

"Hey, Reyna," a male whisper from behind her called to her. The owner nudged her with his pencil. He might as well have shaken her with all his strength.

She forced herself to turn around. "Yeah?"

Her blue eyes locked with her friend's, Dante. As soon as they did, he looked away and found another focus point on her face.

"Your thing is still on for Saturday night, right?" he asked her.

He referred to the birthday bash Reyna was going to throw at her house that weekend.

"Yeah. Why?" she asked, the excitement of her party easing her migraine a bit.

Dante ran a hand through his short, earthy brown hair. "Are you going to need any help getting it together?"

Reyna smiled. "No, I should be fine. I'm just gonna buy snacks. Everyone else brings their own stuff, really."

"Okay. Let me know if you change your mind."

"Yeah. Thanks for offering."

He kept quiet for a moment, his eyes narrowing. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. Just fine," she said. The pain in her temples branched down her face as if to punish her for her lie.

Reyna turned back to her desk and exhaled a shaky breath. The dizziness that overtook her and the familiar, hot sensation that spread throughout her torso told her there was no stopping it now.

She gripped her shirt and shut her eyes. Not again. Please!

A spark erupted in her chest. The fire caught and expanded with the rippling pain of having someone swing a bat to her ribs. Reyna could not hold back the shriek of pain that frayed her throat as the flames won.

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