Unchronicled: Subduing the Scourge

By Kamil Przybylo

Auron Sypher lives a normal life as a twenty-five year old game developer with his girlfriend, Angie Maldano. After a long week at work, Auron, Angie, and a group of their close friends decide to have a relaxing evening out in Seattle. The night is enjoyable as usual, but the drive home drags them out of their simple lives and forces them into a vortex of confusion and despair.
After almost being involved in a nearly fatal car crash, they find that a curse has begun flowing through their veins. Now, the only way to cure themselves is to investigate the life and death of the man who nearly drove his truck into them. Who is this strange man, and what is his connection to this unexpected curse?
Auron doesnt realize his true nature until the unimaginable happens. How far will he go to save his friends and the love of his life? What will he discover about himself when he is put through his worst fears?

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: May 2, 2014
• ISBN: 9781493199730

Book preview

Copyright © 2014 by KAMIL PRZYBYLO.

Library of Congress Control Number:   2014906986

ISBN:   Hardcover   978-1-4931-9974-7

   Softcover   978-1-4931-9975-4

   eBook   978-1-4931-9973-0

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted

in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,

without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the

product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance

to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

Rev. date: 04/24/2014

To order additional copies of this book, contact:

Xlibris LLC

1-888-795-4274

www.Xlibris.com

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619070

CONTENTS

Chapter One               A Change Of Pace

Chapter Two               The Crimson Blade

Chapter Three             Ken Lee

Chapter Four              Jumping To Conclusions

Chapter Five               Family Reunion

Chapter Six                 The Big Plan

Chapter Seven            Midnight Assassin

Chapter Eight              Moonlit Gallery

Chapter Nine               Mengutuki Belati

Chapter Ten                 Unwanted Vacation

Chapter Eleven           Boredom Kills

Chapter Twelve           Malediction

Chapter Thirteen        Five Star Hotel

Chapter Fourteen        The Kemalangan Islands

Chapter Fifteen              Night Run

Chapter Sixteen              Paradigm Shifts

Chapter Seventeen         Rude Awakening

Chapter Eighteen            The Shipwreck

Chapter Nineteen            The Longest Day

Chapter Twenty               The Hidden Ruins

Chapter Twenty-One      The Longest Night

Chapter Twenty-Two      On The Trail Of The Tomb

Chapter Twenty-Three   Just A Few Splinters

Chapter Twenty-Four     Wall Of Calcium

Chapter Twenty-Five     Blue Haze

Chapter Twenty-Six      The Real Treasure

Chapter Twenty-Seven   The Price You Pay

Chapter Twenty-Eight   Pulling The Curtain

DEDICATION

I would like to thank everyone that has supported me throughout this long process. My parents, Renata and Stanislaw. My brother Matt. I would also like to thank all my friends, including Jonathan and Igor for their continuous support. Although not a part of my personal life anymore, Mediha always had high hopes for this novel. Thank you for everything that you have done.

Thank you Adnan, for the great interpretation of my idea for the cover art and for helping me get the book together. The artwork couldn’t have been done any better. Without everyone being by my side, this novel would have never been released.

This book is the culmination of stories and ideas that are based off of my friends, family, and life. It is a work of fiction and should be treated as such.

This novel is for my parents. My biggest supporters.

It is also for me personally. I wanted to prove something to myself.

CHAPTER ONE

A Change of Pace

The sound of seagulls woke Auron up from a heavy sleep he did not remember entering. He tried to move, but realized that his wrists were tied to a chair. His eyes opened. Everything was dark. Thoughts started rushing in. How did I get here? Where are my friends? Where is she? Angie. A throbbing pain makes its way up Auron’s skull as he hears someone take a step toward him.

Where is it? said an unknown voice that seemed to be right next to him. Auron did not respond. He was much too focused on figuring out how he ended up in this situation, and how he could get out. After a few seconds, a cold gun was put in his mouth with the barrel facing his throat. The acrid taste surprised Auron as he tried to move his head out of the way.

Darkness. The smell of saltwater. A gun in my mouth. How did it get to this, Auron thought. He heard a female voice scream at the top of her lungs. Could it be Angie? . . . No. I can’t tell. The wrap around his head was covering his ears and the sound was too muffled.

I’m going to ask you again. WHERE IS IT? yelled the voice on the other side of the gun.

Auron tried to speak. I—I—DNTTT. The gun was removed from his mouth.

I can’t hear you, said the voice.

I don’t know! After a moment, Auron felt the sting of cold metal hit him across the face. Blood ran down his cheek. He felt sick to his stomach, but he couldn’t feel the pain. There was only one thing on his mind.

Well, you better get it, said the voice, or I’ll kill her. Auron listened in despair as he heard a click and another scream.

NO! yelled the female voice.

How did it get to this, he kept wondering to himself. How?

Five Days Earlier

Pass the hose, said Jonathan Skyles, holding out his hand. He had recently come back from the Marine Corp and this was his second week of civilian life. It was Jonathan’s first weekend out with his friends since his return. He hasn’t changed at all, thought Auron. Still tall and dark but his hair was so short you couldn’t tell if it was curly or straight.

Nope, replied Angie Maldano. She had a big smile on her face. I’ve only had it for a few minutes. Auron had it for like ten minutes.

What are you talking about? said Auron. He chuckled then changed the position of his legs and leaned towards Angie. Auron wore his favorite black leather jacket and jeans. Even though they didn’t try to dress in similar clothing, Angie and Auron both wore jackets and blue jeans that night. I didn’t even smoke this round, he reminded her. Besides, its almost done and the hookah bar is about to close. He tried moving his medium length, brown hair out of his face, but remembered he had it cut the same day. Glancing at his phone, he realized it was getting late. Already 1:30? The hookah bar was going to close in half an hour.

Our hookah is still going, said a tall, medium built man with brown hair. His sarcasm was very blunt. William Anderson, who was always making sarcastic jokes, was never taken seriously. Everyone knew that when he opened his mouth, movie references and jokes were all that poured out.

Will, you don’t even smoke, smirked Auron with a half smile.

So?

So . . . you wouldn’t even know.

Our hookah is still going, though, Nikolas pointed out, and these tops hold a lot of shisha which I payed for. I want my money’s worth, he said taking in a deep breath of smoke afterwards. Nikolas and Kira were sprawled on the couch and Kira had her arm around him. She was half asleep. Nikolas poked her on the side facing away from him. She looked over and flicked Sheri.

Ouch! Quit it!

You quit it.

Alright, its time to go, said Auron as he watched his friends’ shenanigans. I hate driving too late at night. Not that safe. Auron always had a fear of the road, especially at night. He knew he was a great driver, he just didn’t trust others. Especially at this hour.

I think its safer, said William. Less people on the road.

Auron ignored William’s comment and stood up, almost knocking over his bottle of water that was sitting next to him on the couch. He put his arm out for Angie and pulled her out of the couch, which seemed to suck everyone in. He then pecked her on the cheek. She smiled as she picked up her purse that was lying on the floor. Auron looked around the bar. Almost everybody had already left. A small group of people were sitting, smoking, and playing cards on the other side of the room.

The bar itself was full of couches to relax in and small tables to put belongings on. There were curtains that separated the smoking areas and a small vending machine next to their section of the room. The same vending machine that took Auron’s dollar a few nights back.

Auron glanced over at Nikolas Barkov and Kira May Chaunce, who were a new couple. They were only dating a few weeks so far. Nikolas’ father was Russian and his mother was African-American, but he had a very light skin tone. Kira was a mix of Hispanic and French and she was even lighter than Nikolas. Auron then looked at Angie and smiled. His girlfriend of four years was European. She had long brown locks of hair and the most adorable smile. Her brown eyes sparkled as she looked at him. Like little stars, he thought. Auron’s smile changed into a more serious expression as he refocused his thoughts.

We smoke too much, he blurted. Auron liked smoking, but admittedly didn’t want to do it too often.

Calm down, said Angie. We only come here like twice a week.

Don’t listen to her, man, Jonathan interrupted. She’s super light headed from all that smoke. She’s crazy.

I’ll show you ‘light headed’, mumbled Angie, punching Jonathan in the arm.

Alright, guys. Let’s go. Or I can leave you all here if you want.

Almost immediately, the rest of the group stood up, picked up their things, and headed out the door. Auron left the building first, breathing in crisp, clean gulps of air. Feeling refreshed, he walked towards his car.

The air is too clean out here, joked Jonathan as he left the hooah bar. It’s hurting my lungs.

Auron looked up and saw a dark and cloudy sky. He could see the stadium in the distance, surrounded by dark patches of clouds and only a few twinkling stars.

It was sunny all day and now it’s all cloudy. Seattle has bipolar weather, Sheri hissed in disgust. I want to go on vacation. Sheri Lin was a short southeast Asian girl with a bit of an attitude when the mood struck. She had short black hair and wore a pair of glasses with blue frames. Everything about her was short. Even her patience.

But it’s summer, said Angie. Why would you go on vacation during the only good season in Washington? Go during Fall. All it does is rain.

Auron was walking closer to his car when he noticed a small scratch on his front bumper, by the left fog light. How terrible of a driver do you have to be to hit someone while leaving a parking spot, he thought.

Yo, look; said William. He pointed at Auron’s vehicle and chuckled. Someone hit Auron’s car. They were parallel parked and there was nobody in front of him. He then pointed at a fire hydrant and laughed. All the guy had to do was drive forward.

Whatever, I’ll call my insurance in the morning, said Auron, with an irritated look on his face. He didn’t care too much about his blue hatchback. It was given to him by his uncle, right after Auron’s aunt passed away. Auron’s Uncle moved a few month after, leaving him with a car that was about the same age as him. It already had a few rust holes in the roof. What’s a few more scratches, Auron thought. He was saving up for a new car anyway.

Want me to drive? Angie asked, as her brown, wavy hair danced in the early morning breeze. The outfit she wore matched her personality perfectly and she always wore something different. This time, she looked like she was ready for anything the night had to throw at her.

You know I love to drive, she smiled. Her bubbly attitude had always caught Auron’s attention. She was usually in a good mood anywhere they went and she always tried having the best time, often encouraging him to do wild things.

No, I’m good. It’s only a fifteen minute drive.

Hey, who’s coming with us? asked Nikolas, holding Kira by his side.

Can you drop me off? said Sheri, raising her hand.

No problem.

Alright, you guys come with me, said Auron, looking at Jonathan and William.

Oops. I think I left my house keys at your place, Angie, said Kira as she searched her purse.

Looks like we’re all coming back to my house, anyway, said Auron. Kira was very forgetful and ditsy. Her and Angie have been friends since high school and she introduced Auron to Nikolas. Since then, they have been pretty good friends. But, Auron’s best friends were Jonathan, whom he had known since middle school, and William, whom he had met in middle school but didn’t really know until late high school.

Everyone lived just south of Downtown Seattle except Jonathan who now lived in Texas with his wife Marie. He was originally from Tukwila like the rest of his friends, but moved down south to live with his wife. A compromise that made her life easier, but made it a bit more difficult for him. Marie and Jonathan met while in the Marines and not too long after, they fell in love and married. He was visiting Auron for a few weeks, allowing them to catch up.

Angie, Jonathan, and William hopped into Auron’s tiny blue hatchback while Kira and Sheri got into Nikolas’ medium sized grey sedan. They Headed toward the stadium and took a left to get on Interstate 5.

Turn the heat up, it’s freezing, said Angie. As Auron started to move his hand towards the heater in his car, she quickly grabbed his hand and held it. She turned up the heat with her other hand and smiled.

She is too cute for her own good, though Auron, as he kept his eyes on the road.

They were nearing the exit to Auron’s house when, in the distance, he noticed a speeding car swerving, as if it was trying to avoid hitting cars that weren’t actually there. In a split second the car jumped the median. Auron swerved as fast as he could to the left, trying to avoid the large black truck, which seemed like a huge cannon ball aimed at them.

The truck made most of the leap over Auron’s hatchback but the back left wheel hit his car’s roof and dented it quite a bit. Angie screamed as loud as she could. The truck kept going and almost hit Nikolas’ car, but he braked just in time to avoid a head on collision. After a few seconds, everybody heard an extremely loud bang and the sound of grinding metal.

Holy shit, said Auron, looking into his rear view mirror. He quickly parked his car on the shoulder, slammed the door, and ran towards Nikolas’ vehicle. Are you guys alright? They slowly nodded yes. He made sure everyone was alright and then ran back to his own car and told William to call an ambulance and his father, who was a police officer and scheduled at this time.

If you didn’t swerve, that car would have landed right on me, whispered Jonathan in a shaky voice.

Don’t worry about it, replied Auron. He started jogging towards the dark, smoking truck, not knowing what to expect. He had never witnessed a car crash in his life and was shivering, but he knew it was not because of the cold morning gale. Auron walked up to the truck and realized the bang was caused by the car hitting a medium sized tree, which was now cracked about halfway up its trunk.

Hey, guys . . . take a look at this . . . Auron yelled in a slow, shaky voice. Everyone walked to the black truck. Sheri quickly turned around and squatted in the grass, trying to hold back her tears. Kira, the last to walk up to the front of the vehicle,