As Thomas took his first step out from the safe haven of the golden threads, his short young life suddenly flashed before his eyes.
He saw himself as a child, chasing after the autumn leaves on the streets. The other children had not wanted to play with him. Then he saw himself at his graduation with freckles and braces complete with cracked glasses, standing alone and smiling awkwardly at the camera while the rest of his classmates stood in the arms of their parents. He had been lonely then. The image was soon replaced by his first-day job as a library assistant at the Birmingham Library. He had felt at home there and was accepted by all the book-loving children who would share with him their candies and sandwiches.
A smile appeared on his lips just then, and his vigour renewed as he stepped further out to face the rage of the black mist. With each step he took, a surge of determination began to flow through him, growing stronger and stronger, until it became an unsto
Misty snakes slithered from the remaining figure’s cloak even as it screamed bloody murder. And the swarm of snakes began to crawl toward Vlad.He could have fled then, he could have abandoned Suzanne and her friends for the sake of his own life. But he was brave, even as the recognition of impending doom stared at him in the face.One of the misty snakes slithered up to Vlad and drove its fangs deep into his ankle. Immediately his skin seethed with pain as the venom began to travel to his heart. He tried to fight it off, but the dagger had gone up in flames and he had no tricks left to pull on this particular demon of the dark.Then another snake came forward, and still another, until soon Vlad could no longer stand. He crumpled to the ground, his body failing as a numb wave of a million daggers pierced his body and his head. With every breath he took, he heaved and coughed up blood.He never stood a chance. The vampire from the ancient of times began to die
The voices were calling out to Suzanne. She couldn’t be sure if they originated from the abyss or from the hooded figure hovering at the door. But there was nothing soothing about the voices. Every sound that they made sickened her, making her feel as if maggots were crawling over the top of her skull and into her ears. She shook her head furiously but the sensation refused to go away.Focus damnit….“Suzanne….” the voice called out again. It was the same voice that had called out to her from the garden. And the airport. And in her nightmares.The voices were awful. She couldn’t comprehend what they were saying save for the calling of her name but she was pretty sure they were some kind of distorted incantation. All of a sudden, she had an avalanche of dark and alien thoughts. She did not like them, not one bit.She looked over to Tom who stood slightly hunched over, ready to pounce on the figure if need be.
The dark figure was cunning. Yes, even in its weakened state, it knew that Suzanne and her friends were no match for it. It had been plunged with the ancient dagger; but alas, the dagger was not as powerful as the one Vlad had yielded.It rose from the ground once more, looming over them as the remaining strands of mist swirled voraciously around it, much to Suzanne’s horror.Through its veil of darkness, it could see Suzanne’s eyes widen in disbelief, as confusion glided across her face.From behind the being, the golden-haired woman crept up, ready to strike. Her reflexes were tremendous and her moves instantaneous but without the dagger, she was no match for it.It raised its hands and with an invisible force, it dragged the woman across the marbled floor towards it before she could even counter herself. She was savagely pulled into the enemy’s grasp and it crushed her by the shoulder before flinging her across the foyer and crashing
In a flash of blinding light, the bloodied circle from which Suzanne had pulled the dark figure into, exploded, sending a gigantic shock wave throughout the hill on which the mansion stood. It lifted everyone up in the air and for a moment, Tom felt as if he could fly. But he did not land gracefully. He landed on something hard and felt an agonizing pain shoot up his body. For all he knew, he could have broken his hip. Then everything faded to black.He had no idea how long he stayed unconscious but when he opened his eyes next, a smoky wind was blowing in his direction. The mansion was on fire. It had gone up in flames.With great difficulty, he sat up, only to fall back on his back. He looked down and to his horror, he saw that his stomach was bleeding. He had in fact been lying in his own pool of blood.“Stay still,” a female voice said. He looked up, it was the blonde woman. Her skin had miraculously healed. She pricked her finger and allowed her blood to dr
Suzanne Summers was a clairvoyant. And a genuine one at that. Not one of those rip-offs who stared into crystal balls and charged clients a hand and a foot. Well, alright. Maybe her charges were quite exorbitant but it wasn’t every day the average Joe got to find out that his dead great grandfather wanted to share with him, his secret stash of gold bars hidden underneath the floorboards of the family house.In short, Suzanne was good at her job. She could see ghosts, speak to them and relay their messages to their loved ones. And for that, she was paid handsomely.Today, Suzanne sat in her office. Sunlight streamed through the sole window of the room through its recently wiped glass with dust mites dancing in the sunbeam. Suzanne was hunched over her white Ikea Micke desk, papers strewn all over the place as she chewed on her ballpoint pen. Her curly dark hair was tied up loosely in a bun while her glasses kept sliding down her b
The red Volkswagen came to a screeching halt at the crowded parking lot. Suzanne opened her car door and stepped out, pushing her glasses back up her nose. She swore to herself to get LASIK done after this job was over.Right. You’ve been saying that for the past 6 years and you’re still wearing glasses.Groups of students could be seen walking towards the entrance of Knewton University’s main hall. Knewton was one of the most prestigious universities in the city, second only to the likes of Harvard and Princeton.“So your son lectures here. Impressive,” Suzanne said, not caring if anyone thought she was talking to herself. Yvonne Long’s spirit stood next to her and looked at the school proudly.“Yes,” she beamed with pride and headed towards the entrance. Suzanne grabbed a red shiny toolbox from her passenger seat, closed
Suzanne stepped out of Knewton University’s hallway entrance with her trusty red toolbox swinging in her hands. As she bounced towards her car, she took a look at her surroundings and marvelled at all the students around her. She never did attend university, having already started her business at a tender age of 18. The youngsters seemed to live in a whole different world. For a brief moment, she wondered what life would have been like if she had been born a normal girl.Then she shook her head. Get a grip Suzanne Summers.She opened her car door, hopped in, and started the engine. As she revved away, she missed seeing a black mist forming in the shadows at the entrance of the hallway. In fact, no once seemed to the ominous dark matter. No one could see it.It stayed there for quite some time as if confused. What was it here for again?Then, as a young woman walked out of t
"He's coming!"Suzanne glanced up from her tablet to see an excited looking Yvonne Long squealing like a little girl.