METAMORPHOSIS • DEREK HALE [COMPLETED]

Chapter One

"Hello," Alex called out into the dark and foggy woods, confused after waking up into a unreal, dream-like state. She stood up and brushed off the dirt from her dark blue jeans and long sleeve t-shirt. Despite her thin outfit, she wasn't bothered by the chill of the night. It was almost like she couldn't feel anything, not even her own two feet on the ground. "HELLO," she shouted again, louder, but still received no response.

Suddenly, a young boy sprinted past her, obviously running from something. "Hey! Wait," she yelled out and ran after him. They both missed the edge of a sharp cliff, and they tumbled down the rocky ridge. They landed with a loud thud. She felt the wind being knocked out of her but no pain. Alex looked over at the boy to see him covering his ears next to a small stake in the ground that was emitting a loud sound with blindingly flashing lights. She recognized it. It was a tool often stocked in the arsenal. She swiveled around to see multiple flashlight beams approaching them, pushing them to run faster. Every fiber in Alex's body was telling her to follow the mysterious dark haired kid despite her not knowing him.

After they charged past another blinking stake, he collided with another boy running from the same people. Alex noticed the boy's fingernails grow to be exceptionally sharp within seconds. A werewolf. She speaks out to grab their attention, but the two boys continue to stand, unable to hear her. "You're a Hale, aren't you," the second one asked.

Why does Hale sound so familiar?

The boy Alex saw first didn't have time to respond because in the next few seconds, an arrow was shot through the older boy's throat. Both Alex and the teenage boy were too stunned to react. When the older boy fell, a shooter with an arrow ready to go was revealed. Alex heard the whoosh of it flying through the air, but she shut her eyes, expecting it to hit the boy next to her. She opened her eyes to see another, older teen holding the arrow centimeters away from the younger one's face. The two dashed out of site, and Alex unknowingly went with them. She felt that whenever the younger one would go far enough away from her, she would blink and end up back by his side again.

She looked around at her new surroundings to find them all crouching in a small bunker type shelter with large tree roots growing inside of it.

"What's going on? Who are you? Who are those people looking for you," she asked in a panicked whisper. Neither replied, unaware of her presence. After repeating the questions louder and shaking their arms, she still received no response. She desperately tried again to grab their attention, but she earned the same results. "Fine, if you guys won't give me answers, I'll go ask them myself," she stood up to walk up the wooden planks leading outside, but when she did, she was overcome by dizziness and then total darkness.

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She woke up again feeling panicked, but when she opened her eyes, she saw white ceiling tiles above her. Alex say up and looked around her to see the walls covered with lockers and fliers; a high school.

She heard the constant sound of a basketball being dribbled, and she walked towards it to investigate. Standing in the middle of the adjoining hallway was a group of teenage boys all laughing and loudly passing the basketball between each other. Alex recognized one. It was the same dark haired boy from the woods and the bunker. "Hey I know you. I just saw you in the woods..." She trailed off, knowing how strange that sounded. "You're Hale, right? What is happening to us," she tapped him on the shoulder, but he didn't feel her, he continued to play basketball. "Are you ignoring me or what," she shouted in frustration. "Can you please just tell me why I keep blacking out and ending up wherever you-"

"Hey, do you guys mind?" A pretty girl appeared, looking annoyed. Alex watched the group of boys turn around to look at her. "I'm trying to practice."

"How do you know we're not trying to practice out here too," the Hale kid responded cunningly.