AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Get her out of here, James! Now!”
James looks at the sky with fear and quickly grabs the girl’s hand and pulls her behind him. I let out a sigh of relief, following in their footsteps, when suddenly, an electrical energy enters through my mouth and makes me cry out in agony, taking me to my knees on the sand.
I fight whatever is happening in my body, but the power continues to infuse itself with my very being, suddenly lifting me into the air.
James
“No! Derrick!”I scream, forced to watch in horror as my best friend’s body is lifted into the air while the aqua colored essence surrounds him, engulfing him.
The woman behind me says nothing as I stand there, paralyzed, watching Derrick’s body convulse and finally fall to the sand.
My heart stops in my chest for a few seconds before it beats again. I immediately turn to the girl. “Listen to me, you stay here. I’ll be back. I need to check and see if he’s still alive.”
I don’t wait for her answer as my eyes burn with unshed tears. I leave her standing there as I run as fast as my legs can carry me over to Derrick’s side.
His body is lifeless, unmoving, face first in the sand. I slide to a stop and drop to my knees with a deep ache in my chest. James and I have been through a lot together and always came out in the end—always. This can’t be how it ends between us. I pull his head onto my lap and gently brush away the sand. His eyes are closed and I want nothing more than to force them open, force him to curse me over convincing him to go to the stupid cult meeting to begin with. Why didn’t I leave him out of it?
I just wanted my best friend, the person I cared most about, to share another part of me. This is where my selfish desires led us. Guilt eats away at me like a living thing and I grimace as the pain in my chest deepens.
I see the pregnant woman’s legs in my periphery and slowly lift my head toward her; the tears tracking down my cheeks. Her face is contorted in horror as she backs away.
She lifts her hand to her mouth, then moves it to her stomach and whispers, “Our world is over. Your friend is dead.”
“No. It’s not possible,” I say in convicted denial, my voice cracking. “Listen, there’s a chance he’s still alive. He’s not dead. He can’t be dead!”
I know the chances are grim, but I can’t see myself living a life without Derrick. He is all I have left in this world after my mother abandoned me.
“We have to get out of here,” she states with a strange inflection to her voice. I turn to look at her, confused, and watch as she shakes her head, lips trembling. “We have to get out of here, now! Please, trust me. This world is damned and only one thing can save us… if we can find it.”
Focused on her, I jerk in surprise when Derrick’s body vibrates and twitches.
My fear turns into elation. “He’s still alive! Derrick! Can you hear me, man? Say something to me!”
As if by an invisible force, his body is brought to his feet, and he stands there, expressionless as he brings his hands to his face and examines it front and back. The hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. This isn’t right. This isn’t Derrick. Everything is all wrong.
Derrick’s head snaps to the remnants of the dead bodies on the beach. A smile cracks across his face before he lets out a booming laugh reminiscent of the monster. I quickly scramble backward away from him, chastising myself that I shouldn’t be running away from Derrick, who is still in there somewhere. I need to save him!
I get to my feet and run over to the pregnant woman who stands there, staring at Derrick’s back.
“What just happened? What’s inside of Derrick? That’s not him!” She knows something, doesn't she? Didn’t the cult leader say she volunteered herself? She knows something I don’t!
Her voice wavers, but the next words out of her mouth make my heart drop to the pit of my stomach.
“H-he took my place in the sacrifice to the Dathrokei. It’s inside of him now and our world is doomed.”
She can’t be serious. I grab her shoulders and turn her to face me. “Tell me how to save Derrick! I know you know something! Tell me, now!”
I should probably kill her and call the police. There must be a reason why she was on that table. Or maybe I need to find a priest and live at a church after what I just saw. There is no way the authorities can do a fucking thing.
That is when her brown eyes turn a glowing shade of blue and an aura manifests around her. Though it isn’t as powerful as the monster inhabiting Derrick, it is all too familiar.
I take a few steps back, the emotion of betrayal lancing me as badly as Derrick’s inhabitation. “What the actual fuck? Are you like him? The monster?”
Shame crosses her features as her tears track down her cheeks. “He’s my father.”
James
I shakemy head in astonishment. What in the world is going on? Is everything I know in this life a lie?
