The sound of thunder echoed through the air while the cold wind blew, rustling the northern pine trees so loudly I was sure one would fall. The sky looked bleak, and we could all feel that there would soon be a storm coming. The chill went right through me and an eerie feeling sent a shiver up my spine. I was more exhausted then I'd ever felt before. Ever since those bloody centaurs slaughtered our mule, we had been traveling all the way up north on foot, our shoes worn, and practically on the verge of being unusable in Kieran's case. But of course, Kieran never complained.
We'd come prepared. James Mallory was a vampire and we knew we had to be clever if we were going to best him. We were armed with wooden stakes we'd carved from fallen branches; one of the very limited upsides to unruly weather. Kieran and Lily we made sure would be prepared with garlic flowers and cloves in their pockets and hung around their necks. Kieran insisted only a few nights prior that we could run into James any day, and since then, Lily and Kieran had been wearing the garlic. This was unfortunate for me because it meant Kieran and I could sleep together until this was all over (and by sleep I mean literally sleep, you perverts! Well, most of the time anyway...) Moving on, this is what you've been waiting for darlings, is it not? The piece de resistance! The epic climax that shatters you to the bone! The anticipation in seeing my vengeance carried out! Unless, you are that "anti-revenge" sort of person, in which case why are you still here? Regardless, I'm sure you are anxious for me to just get on with it, and in fairness I am too. This whole writing process has been cathartic but at the same time I've already grown bored with myself. But, I suppose if I gloss over this incident that would be incredibly cruel to you my dears, especially since you have been patient and kind enough to get invested in my tragic tale. Well, here it goes.
On this particular day, a strange feeling came over me and wouldn't go away. As I said previously, I was feeling a million different emotions at once as the event grew nearer, but it was more overwhelming than anything else. However, now it was different. It was a sense of dread. A foreboding air that told me I was not going to either live to see the next day, or wake up tomorrow happy. As is my method, I of course pushed these feelings aside, the fire of revenge lusting in my eyes. I wanted it so bad that I could practically taste it.
We walked on, all of us beaten down and exhausted. I squeezed Kieran's hand tightly, the wind pushing us back hard. I glanced over my shoulder to Lily and Noah who were just behind us. Lily's eyes met mine and she gave me a warm encouraging smile. My heart sunk. Something was terribly wrong. I turned to keep moving forward, and soon we entered a small open space. It wasn't large enough to be a field and it certainly couldn't have been a meadow since it was too cold up north. It just happened to be a natural clearing, space between trees, but it was more long and narrow than it was wide. We stepped through the forest onto the damp grass of the clearing, the sound of thunder radiated throughout the air. Then, I saw something that made my heart almost leap out of my chest. I could have sworn I was going to faint. There, at the other end of the clearing stood James Mallory.
Immediately my gaze went straight to his startling red eyes, which looked more than puzzled at seeing us. He was tall, but not as tall as I remembered him to be. Definitely above average but only slightly taller than me. His hair was dark, a dark brown that appeared black to me in the candle light the night he killed my mother. His skin was tanner than I remembered it being, and his lips were full, completing his handsome face. He was dressed modestly, but appeared immaculate despite having been in the woods alone for presumably weeks. His dark beard was trimmed beautifully and he was wearing what looked to be a leather fur lined coat. James stepped forward and apprehensively. We did as well.
My legs shook and trembled. I couldn't tell whether my teeth were chattering because of how scared I was or because of the bitter cold winds blowing in my face. "Hello James Mallory," I said firmly. The monster before me furrowed his eyebrows.
"Have we met?" he replied in his deep and haunting voice.
"Not directly," I answered, my tone cold as ice.
YOU ARE READING
NIGEL
FantasyNigel Mallory was born into a fallen world where the towns are surrounded by dark forests and covered by the tree canopy to hide from the dragons that fly overhead. Little did he know the real danger he faced was right at home when he and his mothe...
