Soul Crossers | Wattys 2024

Chapter 1: Brace Yourself

"When two souls cross, infinite potential will be unleashed."

Lilac Solaris had no time to worry about the flames that exposed her pink and green plant skin as she raced through the burning trees and forests, turning back to the hollow bodies and screams of her dying people. Her vine enlarged hand gripped three braces while she bit her lip to endure the electrocution of her handcuff on the other.

Transforming into a leaf cocoon, the tears from her eyes helped her slide and slip through an open log from the ghastly scythe wielding demons haunting her path with sharp blades, spotting another danger following her underground.

"The only person that can stop you from growing is you," echoed in her mind. Lilac nodded, and activated the switches on the three braces she was warned to protect with her life, swallowing them before leaping in the air with large vines.

Swinging from tree branch to branch while panicking from rising gnomes drilling from the ground to flying at her with missile speed that worried the young adult fairy humanoid, she frightfully blasted the red capped, dual horned pointed noses and axe wielding gnomes with a spray of pollen. Her chest then glowed blue. The portal would open soon.

A massive force of wind ripped through the forests and blew her towards a river that would've frozen more than just her tears had she not stretched to the other side. The dragon's flames incinerated Lilac's cover. Almost all of the demon races were hunting her down. She gulped.

Akuma was no longer safe. The place known as Earth was her only hope.

Lilac sprung from the sword swings and razor slashes that could halt her paltry regeneration, trying to glide with her damaged wings. A blue furred humanoid with two swords howled at her with the wings of the dragons she feared.

"Hand over the braces so I can end the false moon and this night! You aren't strong enough to handle it's power!"

Stunned at the familiar face added to the number of pursuers, Lilac's heart wavered, but persisted with her dance of delicate dodges from his sword strikes to escape.

As the bipedal werewolf gave chase, a oceanic beast twice their size with a trident carved between the two as Lilac heard someone calling her nearby. Too preoccupied to answer, she flailed and sprayed spores at all parties around.

A hole in reality emerged not too far from her when a fellow fairy in the shape of a tree hurled a gnome at her. She was lucky enough to blast them in the eye. Rejoicing in the name of the high fae, she rushed towards the expanding portal and jumped in.

The regret of saying goodbye to a world that had rid her near eighteen years of life with turmoil, heartbreak, lost love, terror, and her wishes to see the actual sun and moon was not lost on her. However, the seeds of doubt lingered. The person who she'd give the braces too would help her mentor change Akuma for the better. She wouldn't have to fight any longer.

"Lilac, move!"

The warning came too late: the shaft of the reaper's scythe struck the non-combative force of nature in the back of her head. All of Lilac's thoughts, hopes, dreams and aspirations were as lost as her vision. The last thing she remembered was to find out the braces ended up in the right hands.

----

Syntel Strike eagerly dived to take his first steps at Remnant Convergence College in late August 2022. The dark skinned, five-seven, slightly chubby seventeen year old was relieved from the domestic turmoil from his New York City home to the upstate.

Overhearing people bringing up the shooting star that dropped almost six months from the sky, he recalled praying to it, wishing his mother was still watching over him after the twelve years since he last saw her, and hoping he'd get into college. It wasn't Harvard, but he made it. The extracurriculars, programs, writing letters, SATS, and colleges application essays were his efforts.