Jaden Fire

By Fredrick S. dela Cruz

"Wow! That first chapter! Dug my nails into the book - hooked me for good!"
"A gripping story from beginning to end!"

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A thing half dead half alive, half human half animal is hunting us.
We don't know why. We just know it’s a relentless killing beast.

It started when Angie and I defied and broke the rules.

In this future, no one controls their own lives. At school, from my DNA, they told me what to study. After high school, they’ll tell me what job I’ll get.

We have no choice.

The only thing my parents decided was my name: Joseph.

So when they told me my dad’s death was a suicide, hell, I didn’t believe them. I’m sure they planned that too. Someone murdered him.

Now Angie and I are on the run because we wanted to find the truth, and that blood-thirsty beast is hunting us.
But I have a secret. It fell like a blazing comet from the jade colored sky, changing me in unimaginable, powerful ways. We know now that both terror and salvation lie within that mysterious, ominous sky.

We just need to stay alive ... to find the reason for my dad’s death and find the reason for the jaden sky.

Before they catch us and before the beast kills us.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Fredrick S. dela Cruz
• Release date: Aug 25, 2016
• ISBN: 9781370133635

Fredrick S. dela Cruz

Of Filipino and Norwegian descent, Fredrick S. dela Cruz has lived in Southern California since his childhood. He and his wife have two energetic and playful boxer dogs as part of their family that they adopted through a rescue.He has a remarkable heritage from Norway that took root in America, when his ancestors' family - resilient and faithful - immigrated to the U.S. in 1884. As their ship set sail for the U.S., they had four dollars to their name. When they arrived, they only had three cents left. Nevertheless, they survived, and they prospered.His works include the novels Jaden Fire and Returning Blaze.

Book preview

PART I

Chapter 1: Zhyn

In a future soon to be.

Track

I hear a scream, shaking me to my core. Not because it’s a scream, but because it’s from my mom, and she’s the most fearless woman I know.

She’s in trouble.

Quickly, I turn to my nine-year-old brother Trevor. Before saying anything, I push down the feeling of dread beginning to stir in me. In stern words, I tell him, Stay here and don’t move. Keep Ro and Jule with you.

My eyes dart down to our two wolf-Shepherd mix dogs, Ro and Jule. They’re as big as German Shepherds but almost as thick as bears.

We’re in the woods, heading home from hunting. No more than fifty yards away is our home, a cabin on the side of a mountain. Before I can turn to face it, I hear my mom scream again from inside the house. It’s a scream like no other. Like it’s from her last dying breath.

Fear overcomes me. With the autumn sun going down, in just a few more moments, we’ll be covered by the pitch-black night.

Trevor looks up at me. The same fear shows on his face and his furrowed brows. He pleads, Track, that’s Mom! No. I’m coming with you!

Track. That’s what he calls me, and I’m his seventeen-year-old sister. I’m responsible for him, and I’ve gotta make sure he’s safe and far away from whatever danger is happening at home. Not budging, I tell him, No, Trev. You’re not going.

I change my mind about having both dogs stay with Trevor. I’ll need to take Ro. Ro is the more vicious of our two dogs - vicious against anything that tries to hurt us.

I take Trevor’s rifle from his shoulder. My two hunting knives - one strapped on each thigh - are what I usually use. But right now, I think I’ll need something more powerful. I tell him, You and Jule, go to our hiding place. You’ll be safe there. Jule can protect you.

Jule is more cunning and smarter than any other dog. And she’s just as powerful and protective as Ro.

Trevor hesitates, but he obeys.

Hurriedly tying back my long brown hair, I spring forward and command, Ro! Come!

I start to run.

Racing down the dirt path to the cabin, my slim body weaves in and out of the dense tall pine trees and bushes.

Ro passes me, knowing where he needs to be. Once, we were face to face with another wolf, and just as it started to lunge, Ro was already slashing away at its neck with his ferocious teeth.

In between my heaving breaths, I position my hands on the rifle so that I can take a quick shot if I need to.

A thought flashes. Where’s Pop? Where is he?

While quickly ducking and pushing branches away, a low-hanging twig suddenly whips at me. The dead dried wood nicks the side of my neck, causing a drop of blood to ooze from the opened skin.

Just then, I hear a shot.

Boom!

I know that sound. It’s Pop’s shotgun.

It goes off again.

Boom!

As I get closer to the house, Ro fearlessly rushes in and disappears through the opened front door.

I can’t hear my mom anymore, but my ears hear a painful cry from a man inside. It’s him. My dad.

But there’s something else in there with them.

Immediately, Ro lets out a furious growl. He attacks.

Then I hear the source of my fear. It makes me realize the anguish I’ll feel when I see my mom.

Reaching the house, I leap up the three steps of our porch and stop just outside the door.

My mind reminds me of the words of warning from my dad, Never get into a dangerous area without first knowing what’s exactly in it. My lungs are burning red hot as I peer in. On the side of the house closer to me, my dad is lying in pain on the wooden floor. There’s a huge gash on his upper leg, and blood is draining from it. The artery in his leg is probably ripped open.

At the far side, my mom is sprawled out on the floor, staring up with haunting dead eyes. Her neck is drenched in blood. She’s not moving.

Pain drives a stake into my heart. I realize I’ve lost my mother.

My fingers dig into the metal of my rifle. I try to fight back the tears. Don’t cry now, I whisper in words drenched in agony. Not now. Right now I still have to save Pop. There’ll be time to cry later.

Then I find it. A few feet from my mom. With a fierce roar, the full-grown mountain lion readies to lunge at Ro.

They attack each other.

Their jaws and legs whip and swipe so quickly around that they look like they’re caught in a frantic whirlwind. Their growls fill the air and carry outside. The sound strikes fear in the woods, soaking it in uneasiness.

We’ve had mountain lions around here before, and they quickly leave once they see either Ro or Jule. This one should have already run away once Ro showed up. But there’s something different with it - something wicked about it.

I take a cautious step inside the house. Holding up the rifle, I take aim. The moment they let go of each other, I’m taking a shot.

I force my breathing to slow.

Be ready.

But it’s difficult to concentrate. My heart wants to scream in agony over my mom, and my mind is almost frozen in fright by the sight of the two gnashing beasts in front of me.

Be ready.

I don’t know how I do it, but my finger is able to carefully rest over the trigger, ready for a fast decisive twitch once I need to take the shot.

Finally, just for a moment, Ro and the mountain lion separate: one at my left and the other at my right. It’s an easy target. Both of them are bloodied.

Shoot! Take a shot!

But something makes me completely freeze. I feel as though my heart stopped beating for an instant.

It’s because of what I see from the mountain lion. Turning to me, it looks directly into my eyes. There’s red fiery light coming from its eyes that shocks me, like they’re made of blazing fire itself.

I hear myself say in a fearful hush, Dear God. What is that?

I feel like I can’t move.

But years of hunting instincts take over. My finger squeezes the trigger.

Boom!

The shot leaves the world around me in cautious silence.

The bullet shatters the mountain lion’s face.

I’m waiting for it to fall lifeless to the floor.

But it doesn’t.

Instead, it lunges at me, leading with its grotesquely damaged head.

God, help us! I fire round after round at the beast, repeatedly hitting its chest.

In a heartbeat, it’s a stride away from me.

Ro leaps and snatches the mountain lion’s hind leg right out of the air. His powerful body drags the animal away.

I stop shooting and run to my dad. Sliding to my knees, I say to him urgently, Pop, get up! Let’s get out of here!

My dad’s shotgun is on the floor beside him with empty shells close by. Those two shots I heard must have been from him trying to kill the mountain lion.

My thoughts race. That mountain lion should be dead. Why not? That’s just impossible. If Ro can, he’s gonna have to tear it to shreds. That may be the only way to keep it from killing us.

Track, my dad says as he tries to prop himself up. I can’t move my leg. I can’t feel it anymore.

From the corner of my eye, the mountain lion slashes Ro across the face.

Ro’s head snaps to the side, but he still keeps his jaws locked on its leg.

With another heavy blow, the mountain lion slashes him again.

Ro shudders as he lets the leg free.

Gaining its balance, the mountain lion readies itself to pounce on top of Ro to sink its menacing fangs into the back of Ro’s neck.

Suddenly, I hear a fearless growl at the door. As I turn to look, Jule dashes into the house, headed for Ro.

It’s Juliet, coming to the aide of her Romeo.

If this were any other time, I’d think that’s romantic. But right now, I’m too afraid and too worried that the mountain lion can’t be stopped. I’m worried that we could all die. No bullet can stop that thing. But I’m hoping with all my might that my dogs can.

Right behind Jule, Trevor halts his strides just before the door. With wide eyes, he looks in. His face shows his shock.

My eyes dash back to the mountain lion. Jule grabs its hind leg, and Ro leaps to grab the other. They pull away from each other, trying to rip the red-eyed beast into two.

The mountain lion swipes its front claws through the air, but it can’t reach the dogs.

Finally, the mountain lion loses its balance.

Swiftly, Ro makes his move. He releases the leg and pounces on the mountain lion’s neck. There, he saws his teeth into the animal’s windpipe.

It’s a brutal scene.

It’ll end soon.

Track … Track, my dad calls me in whispering breaths. He drops back down to the floor.

I tell him, Pop, it’s ok. We’ll be fine. The dogs have it. We’ll be safe.

Gazing sadly into my eyes, he says quietly, Take care of Trevor. Teach him what your mom and I taught you.

No, Pop! You’re not going anywhere. His lifeblood sprawls out across the floor. You’re staying right here! You’re not saying goodbye! I start to feel a knot in my gut as I realize he believes these are his last moments with me.

Quickly, I take off the rifle’s shoulder strap and begin to tie it around his leg in order to stop the bleeding. I look at the gaping open wound. The bleeding has already slowed. But that means most of his blood has already drained. It’s all around me, and I notice my jeans are drenched in its warm, thick flow.

There’s so much pain in my heart and gut that I can’t stop myself from crying. I know his time is short. My tears start to flow, and I tell him in vain, fumbling my words, You’re, you’re fine. You’ll be fine. I’ll take care of you.

The mountain lion takes its last dying howl.

I look up to watch it suffer. It killed my mother - I want to see it suffer.

Ro’s jaws are solid traps of death over its neck.

But what I thought was a last dying howl was actually a defiant taunt. That thing is still alive, wriggling to be freed and slashing away at Ro and Jule.

It should be dead.

I watch in horror.

Ro rapidly tugs his jaws side to side, whipping his head with awesome force. Suddenly, something breaks off of the mountain lion’s neck. It’s in Ro’s teeth.

I don’t even want to think of what it is.

I don’t even want to look anymore.

But my eyes stay frozen on the sight in front of me, waiting for a dying beast to fall limp to the floor.

But again it just doesn’t.

Instead, it leaps at Ro, attacking with its gnashing fangs. It misses.

Ro’s confidence and ferocity are unfailing. He pounces on top of the mountain lion and digs his teeth into the back of its neck. Dropping his full weight on top of the animal, he pins it down to the floor.

I hear my dad whisper, Track. Get the emergency money. Take Trevor and go to your uncle Dylan’s. His neck starts to loosen, no longer able to keep his head up.

My heart tears into two as I hear his words trying to prepare us to live a life without him. No, Pop. We’re not going anywhere. I’ll take you to the city to see the doc. I plead, Please don’t say these things. Please!

The mountain lion growls deeply. For some reason, I have to look. I feel as if it’s calling to me.

I lift my eyes.

The mountain lion focuses its fiery red eyes at me, as if it understands what I said to my dad, as if it understands that my father is about to die.

Then to my amazement, I start to see the red light from its eyes seep out through its sockets. More flow out through its ears and mouth. Like expanding red smoke, the light floats up to the ceiling.

As it completely drains from the mountain lion, it begins to cover the space above and swirl to form a red, active cloud. Small arcing sparks of electricity flash along its outer edges. There’s too many to count.

The cloud is alive with energy.

It seems alive with life.

Soon, the sparks become frenzied like agitated fire. The cloud turns into a furious tempest, extending whipping appendages of light and arcing electricity. It stirs into motion the curtains and loose objects within the house.

The mountain lion, with the light gone from it, goes limp and drops lifeless. Ro and Jule start to rip it to pieces, not seeming to notice the violent dance of light up above them.

Outside, the sun is down. Inside, the only source of light is from above. Everything is glowing in eerie red.

It’s as though we’re drenched in red death.

That was it. That light kept the mountain lion alive, although it should have been long dead.

Tracker, my dad calls me again with a weakening breath.

Yes, Pop. I’m right here. Gently, I wipe the sweat from his forehead and his thin black hair from his eyes.

He struggles to fill his lungs. His eyes sadly gaze into mine, as if he’s ready to say goodbye. In a faint exhale, he tells me, I love you.

He stops breathing.

No. Pop, no! Don’t go! My voice gets panicked. Don’t leave us! Don’t go!

Trevor runs to us and tightly wraps his arms around Pop’s body, crying, Dad, don’t leave us! We need you here! Dad!

Unexpectedly, the center of the swirling light above plunges down like a violent rush of water, forming into a stream that dives towards my dad. It enters my dad’s head, flooding his eyes, mouth, and ears.

A rush of air churns frantically around us.

The image of the agitated red light reflects from my eyes.

Afraid of what we’re seeing, we hurriedly scurry away across the floor.

Oh, God! I gasp, not knowing what will happen next, not wanting to see what will happen next.

Rapidly, the light continues to enter my dad. His body tightens and clenches with each sparking electricity rushing into him.

I’m in awe and disbelief.

What am I seeing?!

Soon, all the light is within him.

Now everything around me is pitch-black.

Suddenly, all is quiet.

Nothing moves.

My eyes strain through the wall of dense black air, trying to see my dad’s form.

Ro and Jule stop their gnashing.

Silence soaks the darkness.

It’s a long anxious moment before anything is heard.

Then, Trev’s frightened breathing breaks the silence, reaching my ears from across the room.

Suddenly, my dad’s eyes open - red and fiery, like the eyes of the mountain lion. The light from them shines up to the ceiling.

My breath freezes.

Slowly, he raises himself to his feet, like the dead cautiously rising from the cold ground.

With frail knees, he leans and sways, as if he’s trying to learn to balance. His tall and slender body, once confident, now stands crouching with a bent and twisted spine. His arms lift in a ghostly marionette pose.

The hunched, black silhouette within the blacker night makes my heart stop.

With a crooked neck, he turns to me, sweeping his red laser beam eyes across the room.

I hear Ro and Jule start a deep growl, the kind of snarling growl they give to scare something away.

Do they know that’s not my dad?

Or are they just not sure? Is that why they haven’t attacked?

Urgently, I call out into the darkness, Trevor! Come here!

I don’t know how he does it, but he somehow makes it over to me. Together on the floor, we grab hold of each other. Nothing is gonna take him from me.

In eerie slowness, my dad stretches out his hand and points a crooked finger at Trevor. His glowing red eyes fix into position on Trevor’s face.

Trev says something I would have never expected. Track, it’s happening again.

What? What is it? Again? Confused, I turn to him.

His eyes are looking down at his forearm. I follow them to a spot on his skin just below his elbow.

It’s the red spot he showed me a few nights ago. That night, a blood-red falling star shot right over us. It was so close to the mountain that we thought it would hit the trees. But oddly, we never heard it strike the ground. As it passed by, red embers from its long, burning tail floated down around us. One of them landed on Trev’s arm and sank into his skin. Once there, it began to glow warm and red, about the size of a dime. But soon it faded away.

Afterwards, we thought nothing about it, other than believing it was something odd we could tell our parents.

Now it’s back, as if being called to appear by the thing inside my father. It’s pulsating warm and red, and I can feel the heat from it radiate on my face.

Then, a hideous voice projects from my dad’s mouth, slowly speaking an evil hiss of words. Yessss, I’ve found you, he says as the tip of his finger moves with his swaying body. Yes. My Sssseer. My eyessss.

What? Its eyes? What does it mean that Trevor is its Seer?!

I look at Trev, and he’s as frightened as I’ve ever seen him. Grabbing him tightly in both arms, I tell him, Don’t listen to it. Don’t listen! That’s not dad!

My dad’s hand slowly opens, stretching out the rest of its fingers. Then, the palm begins to glow with heat. His sinister voice continues, Your eyessss now belong to a Zhyn. He breathes in. Just as slowly, he breathes out. Then he commands, Find me the Obstructer.

Strangely, I feel Trevor’s body become limp, like all of his muscles just stopped working. If I weren’t holding him, he’d flop to the floor. His eyes stare blankly at my dad’s outstretched hand.

Trevor is in some kind of a trance.

Shaking him, I want him to snap out of it. I scream in fear for his life, Trev! Trevor! What’s wrong? Trevor!

Suddenly, the red spot on his forearm begins to extend itself, sprouting thin, whipping red tentacles under Trevor’s arm. The tentacles appear to latch onto his veins and muscles and start moving up his arm. As the spot moves, its size grows, claiming more of Trev’s flesh as its own.

Stop it! Stop it! I scream out to my dad, hoping he’s still alive and that he can hear me. I feel a helplessness I’ve never felt before - a dread that’s never gripped me before.

The spot becomes large enough to completely wrap around his upper arm. Its tentacles are outstretched and inserted into his veins. At that moment, it stops its motion.

My dad’s hand gradually drops. Aiming his eyes at me, he commands, Find the Obstructer.

With that, his head turns to face the door. Slowly, his bent and twisted body steps towards the threshold. He walks out.

He scans the darkness and the sky above and then goes into the woods. As though learning to move with each stride, he begins to pick up his pace.

I’m left in stunned, cold shock.

Ro and Jule anxiously pace beside us, uncertain whether they should take chase. I hear their nails nervously rap against the wooden floor.

Soon, they begin to bark, calling out mournfully for my dad to return.

Then without an answer to their plea, into the darkness they begin a sorrowful howl, crying for a fallen mother, weeping for a lost father.

Chapter 2: The Black Night

Track

The black night hides the tremendous ache I feel inside, hides the tears falling down my face.

My body is wilted. My emotions are spent.

My mind can’t get things straight.

I remember my dad’s compassionate and happy eyes. They’re eyes that saw me grow and saw me learn from his daily teaching. They’ve turned into eyes of red evil, blazing with the heat of a foul purpose.

What did it say - that being of red agitated light?

Seer? Zhyn? Obstructer?

What does it mean?

Why Trevor?

Still on the floor, I’m holding Trevor in my arms. He woke up from his trance a few minutes after my dad ran out through the trees. He doesn’t know what happened. The red glow in his arm faded and vanished.

There’s something at the side of my neck, and my fingers reach up to feel it.

It’s the half-dried blood from the dead twig that suddenly flicked at me as I ran to the house. It left a slice in my neck.

It’s just like the death of this night that struck us out of nowhere, leaving an open bleeding wound in our family.

I think of why we even settled our home in the shelter of this mountain and its thick trees. Why did we even come here? Was the freedom we enjoyed these years worth this tragic, heartbreaking night?

Right now, I don’t even know.

Back then, my parents had their reasons to want to live the rest of their lives here, reasons bigger than a little girl like me could understand. So, we took all of our possessions out from the city and made this place our home.

During all these years, my Mom and Pop taught me how to survive. They taught me how to hunt, skin our food, prepare it, and cook it. Taught me how to work the land, grow vegetables, and fruits. They made me into someone who can fend for herself and others. Someone who can live past the harsh seasons.

But am I someone who can live past a night like this?

I can’t say.

God, help me when I’m weak.

I wipe the tears away and tell Trevor, We’ll make it through, Trev. We’ll make it through. I’ll take care of you. You don’t have to worry. I kiss his forehead. His body trembles under the pain of his sobs.

At my side, I hear a quiet whimper. Romeo and Juliet are lying beside my mom’s body, not wanting to leave her side.

My mom was the one who found them and took them in with her love. Two years ago, she went down to the city. In front of a grocery store, a young couple was trying to give away a litter of five puppies, saying they were wolf-Shepherd mixes that they couldn’t afford to care for.

When my mom bent down to reach into the big cardboard box they were in, three of the pups ran to her, whimpering for her attention. But two - one white and one black - stayed snuggled with each other, not caring about what was happening around them.

Seeing their unique bond, my mom decided to take those two.

At home, we noticed the two pups never wanted to leave each other’s side. One always clung to the other. In play or in sleep, you couldn’t keep them apart.

So, we decided to name them Romeo and Juliet, the two with undying love.

My eyes try to find my mom in the darkness. Her motionless, black, and empty silhouette blends with the forms of Ro and Jule. Jule moves to rest her head on mom’s still belly.

I remember one day at home. Mom and I were playing with the energetic Ro and Jule, who eventually got really tired. Lying down, my mom laid her head on my lap while she rested the pups on her belly. They cuddled together, looking like a white and black ball of fast-breathing fur.

I was sitting cross-legged on the floor, leaning against the old couch. It was the only couch we ever had. The material on the cushions was so tattered that my mom ended up just covering the whole thing with a big flowery bed sheet.

With my fingers, I started to comb Mom’s long, straight brown hair.

I watched her as her eyes gazed at our puppies with the same look of love and care she always gave Trevor and me.

They’re so cute, I said. I hope they always stay as puppies.

Me too. We’ll have a lot of good memories with them, just like the memories your Pop and I have of you when you were a baby. She sighed contented - contented by that moment, by the ease of the warm day, and by the cool breeze coming through the opened door.

I asked, I wonder how Ro and Jule are gonna look when they get old. Are they gonna be tall, skinny, furry? How about you, Mom? How do you think you’re gonna look? You’ll always be my beautiful mamma. Pop will never stop calling you his gorgeous bride.

That’s sweet of you to say, baby. But I will get old and wrinkly. And I may need someone’s help to do one thing or another when I really get on in my years. But growing old doesn’t mean you resent losing what you had. It means appreciating what you had, savoring it, and keep it close to your heart.

Well, I look forward to taking care of you and Pop when you get old. I let her hair pass gently through my fingers. I’ll always be with you. I’ll always take care of you. You don’t have to worry.

I kissed her forehead.

She looked up at me and smiled. Thank you, my sweet Justine. I will never worry. At times like these, she liked to call me by the name she wanted to give me, not by the name Pop gave me.

The black emptiness of this night replaces the soft, hopeful light of that day.

I wish I could hear her call me that name again.

The memory now hurts me even more.

I’ll never be able to hold her close.

Never be able to thank her for her love for me.

Never be able to see her become old and wrinkly.

Never be able to take care of her.

I cry more painfully.

I didn’t understand it back when we moved to this mountain, but my parents saw something bad coming - a big war happening within our own country. They saw that this country was no longer what it used to be. It became that way a very long time ago, long before I was born.

They started to see people rise up and want to fight against that change.

My parents, instead of staying and preparing for that coming war, left civilization to live a life far away from it. To keep us safe.

But this night, the red beast collided into our world. Now we’re carried off with it. We thought that a coming war could possibly uproot us, but instead, this beast tore us apart. My mom said there are some things you just can’t prepare for. She’s right. This one blindsided us.

It seems we weren’t safe after all.

The irony cuts deep.

A few months ago, my dad told me that he heard news of small groups organizing to fight. Those groups were quickly becoming even larger. He wanted me to be ready for our family to move further into the mountain range. He was hoping that all of it would just pass us by and not even know we existed.

I think of what Trevor and I could possibly do now. Maybe we can join those groups. Maybe we can make their fight our purpose.

But as I consider it, I don’t think we will. We won’t.

We won’t because my dad is still alive. He’s alive. I know it.

I don’t want to believe that he’s gone. The red fiery being that kept the mountain lion alive can also be keeping him alive.

That’s the hope now giving me purpose.

I fear and dread what lies ahead. But I’ll find my dad. I don’t know if I can kill that red being, but regardless, I’ll try to save him from it. I’ll find a way.

The name Pop gave me means even more to me now, and the name Justine - the name Mom reserved for those sweet times with me - is something I’ll soon bury. Bury with her.

Pop gave me my name to build me up and train me to endure harshness. It’s the only one I’ll carry to remind me that I can overcome the trying times ahead.

My name is Tracker.

That’s what I do.

I’ll hunt down the beast.

I’ll take it down.

But as far as those groups who are coming together to fight, they can do what they want. That war will start without Trevor and me. Because we’ll be trying to put our shattered lives and our shattered family back together.

That war will start. It’ll start with someone I don’t yet know - a boy about my age who lives far from here and far from the mountains.

That boy … is Joseph.

Chapter 3: Something Rotten

Joseph

The color of this world is smothering-gray.

Heading home from school, I walk through the streets, and I see that color trying to suffocate every living thing.

This used to be a pretty good neighborhood. Years ago, something rotten crept in. It was just under the surface, waiting for the right moment to show itself.

Now it’s completely out, beginning to take us over, and I smell its stench.

In front of me, a handful of school kids walk. I don’t know if they can smell it or sense it - that rotten thing. But if they’re not talking about it, I know some of us are.

Turning my head around, I look for one of my closest friends. Allen is supposed to pick me up today. He’s been offering me rides home since the school got him a new sports car. His parents let him drive it all the time.

I think they’re nuts.

Because he’ll probably wreck the thing.

They know that Allen’s Life Story is in Entertainment Arts as a racecar driver.

Yeah, Life Story. That’s what the schools call it. When we’re babies they take our blood and DNA. From that, they figure out who we’re gonna be. How tall. How fat. How sick. How healthy. How smart. How strong. Anything you can think of, they say they know what it’ll be.

Then they tell us how we’re gonna live our lives.

But the school only thinks they know what we’ll end up being. Because even though they get it right sometimes, they’re wrong more than they’d like to admit. I’ve got classmates who were supposed to be smart, strong, fast, or musical and never ended up that way.

A few months ago, I went to the school to try to change my Life Story - something nobody has the guts or is stupid enough to do. They flat out slammed the door on me. Hell, if your DNA says your Life Story is in construction, then that’s what you have to study. If your Life Story is to work in a store or in a restaurant, then that’s what you learn.

You’ve gotta do it.

You can’t change it.

You have no choice.

You have no choice.

That’s just one of the things that smash together with other wrongs, like moldy food in a blender, to make that rotten stench I smell.

A lot of people believe this world is what we need. For me, though, because of something that happened recently, it bothers me more and more. I wanna do something. I just don’t know when. I just don’t know how. But I’ll find a way.

It’s late already and the sun just went down.

I glance around.

No Allen yet.

If he doesn’t get here soon, he might as well not pick me up. I’m already getting close to home. He’s probably showing off the car to some girl and forgot about me.

I look up at the darkening sky. Green sky, I whisper. How long has the sky been green?

My dad told me when the sky began to turn this color. It was before I was born. It started with just little green sparkles, twinkling in the afternoon sun. You would have to strain your eyes to see it while looking straight up. Then over the years, the color became more obvious. As more time passed, green took over more of the blue.

Now, the whole sky is glistening light green.

Some people say it’s a soft color of jade and pleasing to stare into, and they don’t miss the blue.

This is the only color I’ve known it to be. I was born with it.

I notice something strange happening in the sky, and I find myself whispering, That’s odd …

A small spot begins to clump together. It’s like a small cluster of air gathering, brightening up, and making a tiny sparkling green star. Soon, it starts to look like a bright jade-colored pinhole in the twilight sky.

I stop in my tracks and freeze my eyes on it.

It looks like it’s becoming a little bit bigger. But maybe I’m focusing so keenly on it that it just seems that way. One of those optical illusions.

Is it moving?

It is moving. Moving down from the sky.

What is that thing?!

It’s slow, but soon it picks up speed. A green whipping tail forms.

Is anyone else seeing this?

Glancing around, I see no one.

Looking back up, I find it again. About a mile away.

Is it coming this direction?

Faster and faster it falls.

Is it gonna hit my neighborhood?

I begin to jog, feeling my backpack thump against me.

The ball of green light seems alive with energy, like there’s lots of arcing electricity inside it.

It is coming down over my neighborhood!

Run!

My heart races.

The adrenaline makes me forget how tired I am, makes my legs forget how much like spaghetti they are after football practice.

I jump down the sidewalk and begin sprinting through the street.

My lungs respond quickly to what I’m forcing them to do, and they begin to gulp in air and spew out heat.

A couple of cars come from the opposite direction, and I hastily dodge them.

I take a turn and head into my street.

Looking up, I see it’s about the size of a car.

Here it comes! It’s gonna hit ground!

The fiery, bright green, comet-like thing disappears behind the rooftops, about to plunge down to the ground.

I expect a crash, a boom, something to rock the neighborhood.

But there’s none.

No blast.

No shock wave.

I don’t hear anything.

I stop, stunned that the whole street is quiet and still.

The trees that line the sidewalk don’t look disturbed, and the yards look peaceful.

But I know it fell in my street!

My eyes frantically search for anything strange.

Reaching my old two-story house, I scan the front yard grass.

There’s no hole in the ground, no signs of any kind of landing.

I look at the other yards. Nothing out of the ordinary.

Then, I decide to look into my own backyard.

The night is getting darker, and now I’m feeling a little anxious and a little spooked.

Cautiously, I walk up to the wooden fence that separates my front and backyard. I peer over the top, thinking I won’t find anything, but hoping I’ll discover something.

Suddenly I realize … I’m not prepared for what I’m about to see.

That’s when I find it.

I’m stunned.

I’m in awe.

There … it landed there.

Chapter 4: It’s Alive

Joseph

At one corner of the backyard, there’s a ten-feet circular area that’s black and charred - newly burnt. I can smell the fresh smoke.

The ground doesn’t look pounded in. Whatever landed probably didn’t have much weight to it. From what I saw of that thing falling down, I’m guessing it could have been some combination of electricity and green energy.

My head leans over the fence. I can’t believe what I’m seeing. There’s a path of burnt grass starting from the circle and heading to my back door.

Inside the house, it’s dark with no lights on. My mom’s not home. Since she has to work two jobs, she doesn’t get home until really late.

Then, my eyes catch something that makes my heart stop and shocks fear into my brain.

There’s something moving inside the house!

I see a glimpse of a light. A green light makes its way across the windows of the first floor.

Whatever it is that’s in there, how did it get in?

My eyes dart towards the back door. It’s closed. It’s locked. I know it’s locked because I remember locking it before I left this morning.

I scan the windows. None of them are broken.

I don’t know what to do. Call the police? Call the Guardians?

I don’t trust them. I don’t trust either of them. They’re just a couple more things mixed in to make the rotten smell.

Jumping over the fence, I decide to find out myself what’s in the house.

This is a bad move, my mind tells me. This is scary. Do not go in there!

But hell, I go anyway.

The muffled sound of my shoes landing on the grass reach my ears, and I think, Maybe I should call Allen. He and I can check out whatever’s in the house.

Forget it. There’s no knowing where that guy is. With girls? On the track? Speeding through yellow and red lights somewhere? By the time he gets here that green thing is probably off elsewhere.

How about just laying low then? Just wait until it leaves?

Right now, I’m too stupid for my own good.

I crouch under the back windows.

Looking up, I see more of that thing.

It’s huge.

It’s one big green light shaped like one of those nebulas you see in astronomy books. Reflecting off of my eyes is the lightning inside it, thrashing in random directions. As it glides around the living room, I figure that it’s about ten feet high, the height from floor to ceiling.

You’re so insane. Get ready to die, man.

My heart literally pounds in my ears while I wait for it to pass by the window I’m under.

There’s a hum of electricity and zapping sounds vibrating through the windows.

It heads for the stairs.

As the thing moves away, I feel the shaking windows ease.

Now, I can sneak to the door.

Reaching it, I take out my keys from my pant pocket. Nervous, my hand is shaking as I lift the keys to the knob. Quickly, I decide to calm myself and yank the keys back down.

Holding still, I take a few breaths.

Ready, I again raise my hand.

The key rattles within the keyhole while I insert it. Holding my breath, I turn the key and unlock the door.

It was locked! Just as I thought. How did that thing get in?

I let the keys hang in the keyhole for a second as I check where that light is.

Suddenly it’s back! It’s hovering just at the other side of the window next to me.

I’m frozen and can’t breathe.

Did it hear me unlock the door?

I wait a long horrific moment. Surprisingly, a piece of that thing passes right through the wall. Its light gives a strange, spooky glowing green color to the outside of the house.

That’s how it got in. It just went completely through the wall and into the house!

Is it gonna go back outside?

Right now, I’m so ready to run for my life.

But then, it changes its mind and heads back in. Soon, it floats up the stairs.

I don’t know why I’m going in, but I’m going in. There’s something inside me that wants to see more. I can’t stop my curiosity. I could end up being zapped by its electricity, but I guess I’m not all too concerned about that.

I slide to the door.

I open it.

It seems so eerie and dark in the house. It’s dead silent, and that thing is casting ghost-like shadows as it moves across the walls upstairs.

In a crouch, I sneak to the bottom of the stairs.

Then, I get a great idea.

I make quick, quiet steps to hide around the corner into the kitchen. I slide off my backpack and set it down on the kitchen floor. Unexpectedly, something rattles inside it.

I freeze for a second. I hope it wasn’t loud enough to hear.

Then, I grab my phone from my pant pocket, and as fast as possible, I turn on the video recorder.

I think I can pull this off.

I turn around to face the stairs.

Suddenly, that thing is towering right in front of me!

I’m caught!

Its green light explodes bright, and I’ve gotta close my eyes to keep from getting blinded. Bolts of crackling electricity snap in my ears. If it can be upset, that’s probably what it is!

I gasp out loud in shock and horror. Falling back, I hit the kitchen counter. As my hands grab the counter, the phone drops to the ground.

In a split-second, it lunges and completely covers me.

Painfully squinting my eyes open, I find I’m surrounded by arcing electricity. They’re like small lightning bolts striking my head. I feel them popping against my skin!

It’s all around me. A jaden fire.

Frightened, I close my eyes shut and let out a yelp.

I drop to my knees. My hands go up and try to shield my head, but it doesn’t stop the bolts from striking me.

Suddenly, I begin to see things. Images in my brain. Even though my eyes are closed, I can see them.

What’s it … what’s it doing?

I begin to feel a sharp ache in my head, and I scream out in pain.

Images keep coming. The same ones, over and over.

Is it trying to tell me something?

Finally, I get it. I think I get it. It’s asking me something!

I blurt out what I think it wants me to answer, No, I’m not a soldier! I’m not a warrior! I’m just a pathetic kid!

More scenes flash. It seems like it’s searching my mind now, and I’m seeing what it’s finding. It probably wants to make sure I’m telling the truth. The images are of battlegrounds, tanks, troops, destroyed cities, and planes dropping powerful bombs.

Trying to focus through the pain, I realize what the images are. I cry out, That’s not real! It’s a game! A game I play. It’s not real!

I guess it somehow understands what I’m saying. But it doesn’t seem to believe me. The pain doesn’t stop.

It scans my mind again. A few short seconds later, it finds me in front of the TV playing a game: War Terror. Angie and Allen are online with me, fighting it out against each other, strategizing, executing our attack.

Surprisingly, the pain in my head starts to lessen, and my eyes sense the intense light dimming.

Does it believe me?

The arcing electricity vanishes … like a switch turning off the power. As I slowly open my eyes, the bright light becomes a soft glow.

It believes me.

Thank God it believes me!

As it backs away, I drop on all fours. Slumping my head down, I sigh out loud, Oh, my God! No more pain.

I’m about to say something stupid, because I don’t know any better.

Looking up, I have to tell it off, Ouch! You prick! That hurt! Do that again and I’ll kick your sorry green ass outta this universe!

I don’t believe I said it.

Sometimes I’ve got one heck of an edge - some people say it’s more of a bone-headed thing. At certain times, I say stuff to fight back, not conform, and not give in. It gets me into big trouble.

I wait to get punished for the attitude I gave. This is the part when I usually get slapped around by some punk thug at school. Pulling back, I twitch and flinch, getting ready for some kind of hit back.

But nothing comes. The green light stays away and doesn’t seem to care. I’m pretty sure it figured that it would win any fight I could possibly give.

Cautiously, I stand.

I notice how huge this thing is. It almost fills the whole kitchen.

With my outburst over, I sigh a big relief. I say quietly and curiously, Who are you? What are you?

I don’t expect any answers. But strangely, it begins to draw in its light. Then, it starts to change into different shapes.

Is it responding to what I asked?

It turns into shapes from the images that popped up in my head when it read my mind. I see the form of an eagle, a horse, and then a roaring lion.

Then, it stops at a final form, a human form, without clothes, without hair, and more like a big, muscled man. But there’s no detail to it. Most of the lines are rounded over, and I can’t make out the face very well. Standing in front of me, he’s a big, strong, bald guy about ten feet tall, made of shimmering jade-colored light.

I’m too much in awe to be frightened anymore.

It opens its mouth, and then from it, tiny flashing lights of many colors float to me like a slow swirling mist.

What is that? I ask in wonder. Are you talking to me? Is that how you speak?

As it closes its mouth, the floating lights in the air begin to smolder away into nothingness. Then, it slowly reaches out a hand and touches my forehead. Its fingers begin to extend and become longer. I don’t know exactly what’s going on, but I think they’re crawling into my eyes and ears.

Now, I’m seeing nothing but green light in front of me.

Could this be bad? I don’t know. My instinct tells me to jump back, but I fight it and stay still.

Whoa. It’s messing with my brain again.

I can sense that it’s showing me things, telling me things.

It says that yes, that is how it speaks, by changing small particles from the air into pure light of different colors.

It tells me its name.

Then, it begins to feed my mind images – like a vision. It shows me a galaxy. The vision zooms in through many solar systems and many stars. Soon, I see a gigantic planet the size of our own sun. It has a moon about the size of the earth and an enormous orange and yellow hot sun.

It came from the planet, from millions of light years away.

We stand in silence for a while. Then, it asks me something, and I answer, I’m Joseph. My name is Joseph.

The pictures it gives my brain fade to black, but there’s one more thing it tells me that leaves me in shock. Immediately, hundreds of questions fill my head that I want to ask.

Finished with what it wants to say, it pulls back its hand.

Stepping away from me, it becomes its original ghostly shape.

Then suddenly, it floats away and quickly flies across the kitchen, through the back wall, and out to the backyard. It speeds upward into the night sky.

As fast as I can, I run to the window to watch it become a pinhole in the air and then disappear from sight.

I’m stunned. My mouth drops, and my warm breath begins to fog up the window.

Its name. It told me its name. Amazed, I whisper, Rexxazzi-el.

The last thing he told me flashes in my mind. I’m not sure how to get a grasp of it. Did I understand him right?

I try to think hard about the things and ideas he showed me. I saw beings just like him on his planet. They were in formation like military battalions. Thousands upon thousands. Probably millions of them, covering a vast open land on his planet, standing ready, prepared for war.

Each one of them had a core of electric lightning within its body, like power ready to explode at will. A frightening sight.

I think about what he said, and I’m just not sure if I wanna believe it.

But I understand this: They’re the jade colored light in the sky completely surrounding the earth.

Why did he tell me about the army on his planet? Was it a warning? Are they coming here?

The words he said begin to haunt me because I realize they’re the terrifying answers to my questions. Looking out the window, I have to say them out loud so that I can actually believe them.

He told me, Beware. We are coming. We are here. We are Horde.

Chapter 5: Things Unsaid

Joseph

Another day of grueling football practice.

Yeah, that’s my Life Story: Entertainment Arts in football.

The DNA tests said I’m supposed to grow to five-ten. That’s pretty much right, but I think I’ll pass that height. My dad is just over six feet. Eventually, I’m supposed to fill in, become strong, a good size for an Entertainment Football running back. I keep working out, but for some reason, I’m not filling in, and my muscles aren’t growing. I’m nowhere near the weight I should be.

I don’t think I was really into practice today. My mind was somewhere else - on that being, Rexxazzi-el. Or Rexx. I really can’t say his name very well. So, I’ll just stick with the short version.

That night after he left, I ran to my phone to look at the video. It was still recording. I was so excited that I could show proof of what happened. But when I played the video, it was all snowy and blurred. It had a long continuous hiss, up to the time Rexx left.

What a complete disappointment!

I’m guessing that whatever Rexx is made of, it messed with the electronics of the phone, keeping it from recording properly.

Practice was also a disappointment. No - an embarrassment. A frustrating embarrassment.

There’s this guy I’ve known since playing football as a kid, at maybe nine or ten. He’s always been bigger than me – way bigger than me. And since then, he’s picked on me for whatever reason. On the field, off the field. He was probably jealous of my dad and me. My dad’s been great – he’s always helped me and supported me. But for Victor, nothing was ever good enough for his dad. He always criticized Victor for anything and everything. Victor couldn’t make the jerk happy.

My dad told me that in life I’m sure to run into guys like Victor. If they’re not the kind that physically pushes you around, then they’re the kind that talks trash or writes trash about you. They’re all the same bully. Dad said that I need to use it to grow a thick skin and not let it bother me. Then, I’ll be able to handle it just fine when I get older.

I really don’t care what reason Victor has anymore. He just never stopped being a prick. He’s the little bully that’s gotten even bigger, but his brain’s stayed as tiny as ever.

We’re on the same team now, but I guess for him it doesn’t matter. He plays on the defensive line, and I’m on offense as a running back. If there’s a way for him to take a shot at me, he’ll make it happen.

During scrimmage, he was on me like a squealing, muddy pig in heat. That’s the best way I can describe it. Because every time we lined up before the snap, he was literally squealing like a pig to taunt me and get on my nerves.

And it got to me.

Whenever I got the ball, I couldn’t move well, couldn’t run anywhere. Victor was always the first to tackle me down.

Coach saw how much I sucked and got all over me, yelling that I wasn’t living up to my potential.

He believes so much in my Life Story that he put me on the varsity squad even though I’m sixteen – close to seventeen – and I don’t have the skills to belong there. Since I’m not yet as big as I should be, he made me a second stringer.

That’s fine with me. The first stringer, Nathan, just runs rings around me on the field. Coach is preparing me to take his place when he graduates this year. But I think Coach is over confident either in me or in my Life Story.

Or maybe, I’m just under confident. I’m not sure if I’ll turn out the way I’m supposed to. There was a time when I thought I could do anything. But something happened recently, and I’m not sure about myself anymore. I’ve lost the confidence I used to have. I don’t know what’s happening to me.

I think I’m close to giving up.

Coach screamed that there’ll be guys worse than Victor in the playoffs, and I just need to get him out of my head.

Oh yeah, we’re going to the playoffs, but it wasn’t because of me. It was more because of Nathan and Christian our quarterback.

As long as I’m not on the field when the game clock starts, we’ll be ok to win.

Anyway, now that I’m walking home, I’m gonna try to get my mind off practice.

Allen said he’d pick me up, but we’ll see. He’s maybe trying to hit on some girl again. He’s not one who gets girls with his looks or his really red hair or his five-five height. But he’s so high-energy and so unexpectedly funny. The girls seem to like the sense of humor. He says it’s his secret weapon in his quest to love-conquer the whole female population.

Him and his Life Story. Of course, he doesn’t complain about being a racecar driver. He’s got great reflexes and great eye-hand coordination. He can play any sport. But at the height of five-five, I’m not sure what other professional sport he could take up. Anyway, he loves the speed.

Even his parents urge him on. His mother told me once with hopeful eyes, He’ll be a star. A celebrity posing on the finish line of a glittering race track. Anyone can tell they’re sold on the whole Life Story thing.

Right after I think about the little red-haired guy, I hear a car engine rev.

It’s him.

He’s speeding right to me.

I step out on the street and wait for him to get here.

As he comes closer, Allen doesn’t slow down. Instead, it looks like he speeds up.

Is he playing chicken with me?

There’s no way I’m moving.

Anyway, if he hits me, I know he’ll regret it for the rest of his life.

He’s thirty feet away.

Twenty feet.

Ten.

Suddenly, he slams on the breaks.

The screeching tires are even louder and more painful to my ears than Victor’s squeals.

He stops on a dime right at my toes.

The white smoke of burning rubber stings my nose.

I face him. I’m shocked and can’t believe that he even tried that stunt. But I’m relieved he pulled it off. Smiling, I yell, You prick!

The music in the car is blaring, and he didn’t hear me. He’s energetically shaking his head to the beat, sticking out his tongue, wagging it.

The window rolls down, and the sound assaults my ears.

Come on in, man! he yells.

I climb in, close the door, and turn down the stereo before it pops my eardrums.

I had to peel off the ladies just so I could pick you up, man! He’s yelling as though the music is still blaring. How about that for a friend?!

Of course, he’s exaggerating. I say, "Peel ‘em off? Like how many? All none of ‘em?"

He finally tones down his voice. Pointing at the side of his neck, he says, Aw, don’t doubt this lady killer.

I can’t believe what he’s pointing at. It’s a lipstick mark. Right, I say dismissing it. Stop paying the girls to kiss ya. You’ll run out of lunch money.

He laughs, Nah … she was all over me. She gave me that for free! Joking, he adds, Well, free this time anyway.

I put my backpack on my lap. Thanks for picking me up.

I think about the other day when he didn’t pick me up, but I saw Rexx instead.

Should I tell him?

I decide not to. I’m not in the mood. If I tell him right now, I won’t be excited about it. Maybe when I feel better, I will. Instead, I say, Practice sucked. Victor’s a dick.

He’s still at it, huh? Allen says as he starts driving.

I shake my head in disgust.

Sounding irritated, he says, "What the hell is wrong with that guy?"

The car moves ahead for a few yards, and then suddenly Allen pounds his fist on the steering wheel.

Surprisingly becoming angry, he says, I’ve had enough of him! I’ll kick his ass for ya. Right now! Immediately, he makes a U-turn, heading back to school. I guess, wanting to find Victor.

His face is completely intense as he declares, This is it! His life changes today! He’s gonna beg for mercy. Quickly and effortlessly shifting gears like a professional, he speeds around a turn.

Zooming down the street, he’s hell-bent on getting his hands on Victor.

I look at him. Does he really want to do this?

He blasts down the road to the school, swiftly dodging the potholes along the way.

I watch his face, impressed with his intensity and his authentic emotion.

He’s doing a good job of convincing me.

At that moment, I catch his grin.

Nodding my head, I say, "Pretty good. I almost believed you this time. I almost believed you were gonna find him and kick his ass!"

He pounds down on the brakes and lays down a stretch of rubber on the road. Grinning, he says, "Yeah, me too. I almost believed me this time. But almost isn’t gonna make me put my awesome hunk of a body in mortal danger." He makes another U-turn to head back.

I laugh. Well, if you ever get beaten up one day, you can use the bruises to have the girls feel sorry for ya. You might just get all the attention you’ll ever need and want.

Allen turns up the stereo and starts getting into the music again.

Glancing out the window, I see a woman walking down the sidewalk.