he clock struck six in the evening, casting an orange glow over the mountains that stretched out in the distance. Elijah and Rebekah sat in the backseat of Josh Orleans' car, the father of Elijah and a close friend of Rebekah's parents. They were headed home after a day of school.
"How was your day?" asked Karla, Elijah's mother, turning to face the two teens.
"Good," they replied in unison.
"We learned some interesting things," said Elijah. "We even saw the place where Melia Conkinova's tombstone is located."
"That's quite something," said Josh, smiling at his son's enthusiasm. "Where is it?"
"It's just outside London," replied Rebekah. "But unfortunately, the professor said it was demolished."
"Outside London..." whispered Karla, "and they called it Fallen."
"Fallen?" asked Rebekah, confused.
"That's where they buried murderers and those killed by others during Christ's time," explained Josh.
"I knew something didn't add up," said Elijah, scratching his head. "Why is Melia buried in a place of murderers or assassins? By the way, the cemetery is actually called Failed Decay."
"If she's buried there, it must be for a reason," said Josh with a sigh. "Heaven knows why she ended up in that place."
When they arrived home, Elijah asked his father if he could take him to the ruins to see Melia's tombstone.
"No," Josh replied firmly. "That's a graveyard, and that girl is dead. You're not going to take something personal from a dead girl. That's just wrong."
"But I'm not going to take it away from her," protested Elijah. "I just want to be sure if her gravestone is real or just a figment of someone's imagination."
"I need to know everything about this woman," he continued. "Her thoughts, her ideas. I need answers."
Elijah's father drummed his fingers on the wooden table before finally giving in. "All right," he said. "I'll take you to see the tombstone. But only so you can see it and leave the subject alone."
Elijah nodded eagerly, thrilled at the prospect of finally visiting the cemetery. "Sure," he said. "I just want to see the tombstone and that's all."
"Just remember," warned Josh. "You have to be careful when digging under the rubble. There's a chance you may find something unimaginable."
With the music blaring, Josh, Rebekah, and Elijah were speeding towards the outskirts of London. Elijah was full of excitement and restlessness, eager to get there as quickly as possible to uncover all the details. His father stopped to ask for directions, and after receiving them from another driver, they continued on until they arrived at their destination. As they looked out the car window, they spotted a sign that was still intact: "FALLEN." It was the only structure left standing in the midst of rubble. As they got out of the car and approached what used to be a cemetery, two officers on duty informed them that they were not allowed to enter. Elijah's hopes were crushed, much like the entrance to the mythical world of Jumanji. His father took notice, and Josh stepped in to take charge. "Officer Ed, just a moment," he said to the officer in front of him. "My son," he pointed to Elijah, "just needs to do a little research for his history homework." "Everyone here wants to dig a l
We are at the mercy of life, unsure of what lies beyond it. Perhaps it continues, or maybe it's just our minds playing tricks on us. That's what Orleans thought, lost in thought. "Everything isn't lost in the rubble," a voice said from behind them. They turned around to see who it was. "Is this what you were looking for?" the stranger asked, holding up the object Elijah had been searching for. She grinned lopsidedly, not showing her teeth. "Yes," Elijah replied hesitantly, disturbed by the dark aura emanating from the woman. "It's funny how the dead are never left in peace, even in death," the stranger said. "What gives anyone the right to disturb them?" "What?" Elijah's heart raced and his brow furrowed. The woman's grin grew wider, showing her teeth mischievously. "Are you joking? I don't know who you are, but I need that diary." He tried to grab it from her hand, but before he could, she did something that left him stunned for several seconds. Rebekah was equally stunned. It
Her eyes, as dark as the deepest night, bore into him, filling him with the worst sense of dread. They seemed to pierce him through his own eyes, as if she could see every thought in his head. The woman's hoarse, hostile voice matched her dark, cold aura perfectly. It was as if his body was frozen in place, paralyzed by fear. The woman's words repeated in his brain like a broken record, as he tried to process what had just happened and avoid panicking. He didn't understand why Rebekah didn't scream or react, just stood there motionless. He heard his father's call, signaling that it was time to leave. His footsteps echoed as he approached, and the sound of debris clattering served as a warning. "No one will have my diary," she stressed every word before disappearing quickly. Elijah stared at a fixed spot in the cemetery, feeling someone in front of him patting his cheeks and hearing his father's voice calling out to him, but it was as if the voice was a mere whisper. "Elijah, son,"
"You're in a bad way, my friend," he said, unable to stop himself from laughing as he entered the social studies classroom. "It's true, Fox," he said to his best friend. "I saw her. I swear I saw her." "Yeah, and I saw Pamela Anderson," said the boy with the light complexion and brown eyes that looked like a touch of sapphire, sarcastically, sitting down at his desk. "Don't you think you're a little off track with this subject?" "No," he replied, sitting next to Fox in the second row. "I'm not out of line. I'm telling you I saw her." "From what you told me, she told you that no one will take her diary," Elijah nodded. "Well, do you think, sir, she could have been a crazy-minded woman posing as the more-than-destroyed Melia?" The other way around, he denied. "I don't think so, Fox. She had a quickness... I can't explain. From one moment to the next, I was up against the wall." "It's Flash," he scoffed and laughed. He didn't take what his more-than-smart friend was saying seriousl
As the days passed by, Elijah spent his free time reading the diary. However, most of the pages of the next diary were blank, leaving him puzzled. He read one page, but when he turned to the next, he found that the author had not continued writing. This intrigued him. "Where are you going?" Elijah asked his parents, peeking his head out of his room as he saw them walking down the hallway. "We're going to your brothers' meeting," his mother replied. His other two teenage sons, Sam and Robert, were twins, and they had a meeting of notes to attend. "We'll come back later, and there's some food in the fridge..." "I know," Elijah interrupted her. "I know how to be alone, mother." "I left you alone once, and you said the fab four wanted to mow you down," Josh couldn't help but laugh. "I was ten!" Elijah exclaimed with a laugh. "It doesn't count." "Yes, it does," they said in unison, giving him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "See you later, dear," said his mother as she headed downstai
When reality hit, it hit Elijah so hard it was like being slammed against a brick wall. He felt every part of his body go numb, and it wasn't just a metaphorical expression. He was more than just scared - his breathing was rapid, his heart pounding in his ears, and he wanted to scream, but his vocal cords seemed to be working against him. In front of him stood a woman whose face seemed to radiate the horrors of a thousand hells. Her hand was tightly wrapped around his neck, choking him, making it hard for him to breathe. He tried to plead, to ask for mercy, but everything seemed to be against him. Then he raised his right hand to show her the diary-book, and the woman's gaze shifted towards it, as if she hadn't seen it for centuries. "I'll call the police," Elijah said, his voice shaking. The woman turned to him, her expression warning him not to say such a thing. "Go ahead," she said with a cold smile. "Let's see who gets there first." Elijah felt a cold shiver run down his spine a
He descended from Elijah's room with the parents of the aforementioned. Upon receiving a call from Rebekah, Fox promptly contacted his good friend's parents, and they all returned home with their siblings. Josh contacted one of his doctor friends, who arrived within minutes and examined their son. The doctor informed them that their son had experienced an alteration, causing him to lose consciousness. Karla and the twins were all concerned, but the 18-year-olds tried to soothe their mother. Josh couldn't comprehend how his son had suffered such an episode in the short time they had been gone. "He'll be fine," Steban, the doctor and friend of everyone, reassured Josh. "His blood pressure has dropped, and he'll sleep for a few hours." "But..." Sam interjected. "What caused it?" "I don't know," Steban replied truthfully. "But whatever he saw, it wasn't good," he sighed, pulling on his black jacket. "I'll come back later," he told Josh as they exited the room. Meanwhile, Karla was so
His gaze travelled to the side of the bed. "What the heck happened to the nightstand?" she asked as she entered the room and carefully picked up what he had said. The lamp had broken, along with one of the science prizes on top of it. "It fell," he answered with a chuckle, and his mother gave him a dirty look. He walked over to her and helped her with the broken glass, carrying them to a small trash can in the corner by the window. He leaned out of the window while his mother arranged the garbage can. Looking down, he saw Melia, their gazes colliding, but she quickly turned on her heels and disappeared. "Why are you smiling so much?" his mother asked, placing the tray of food on the chest. Elijah looked at her. "I'm not smiling."He looked back to the street, and when he did, his brow furrowed as he noticed Melia was no longer there. But at what point...? He only stopped looking for a fleeting second. He closed the curtains and looked back at his mother."I was just admiring the vie