Ashmore Lights: Volume 1

By Sanil Singh

Julia’s life takes an unexpected turn when an ancient artifact finds her.
Little does she know; this artifact holds a dark secret and is part of a centuries-old curse that has plagued the town of Ashmore.
Unexplained phenomena, eerie whispers , and unsettling visions haunt her every waking moment. Despite her initial scepticism, Julia can no longer deny an unseen force that seems determined to draw her into its clutches. Reluctantly, she embraces the supernatural, desperately seeking answers and a way to break the curse before it consumes her and everything she holds dear.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Feb 20, 2024
• ISBN: 9781446143919

Book preview

Ashmore Lights

Volume 1

Sanil Singh

Ashmore Lights

Volume 1

Sanil Singh

Copyright © 2024 SANIL SINGH. All rights reserved.

Published by SANIL SINGH

ISBN 978-1-4461-4391-9

Contents

Chapter 1: The Prowl

Chapter 2: Moa

Chapter 3: Intervention

Chapter 4: The Woman In White

Volume 1

Glass Girls

Chapter 1: The Prowl 

Julia enjoyed arriving at school early. It allowed her to ensure that the day went smoothly.

She was nearly six feet tall and always wore a short blue skirt and a tight green blouse.

There was a strict school uniform code that students often ignored. This led to clashes between teachers and students, resulting in three walkouts. The Ministry of Education had to intervene, but it was the Parent/Guardian Council (PGC) that ultimately found a solution.

Julia leaned in and examined herself in the mirror. She had beautiful blue eyes, a cute nose, strong cheekbones, and a defined jawline. She was a natural blonde, and anyone who claimed otherwise would face her anger. She stayed in shape by working out in her private home gym.

Fitness was not just a routine for her, it was a way of life.

People believe in enjoying life and pursuing their passions. However, this mindset has led to a divided society. Half of the population is overweight, while the other half faces imprisonment.

Julia, applying her expensive lipstick, longed to wear her earrings to school. Her mother happily bought the earrings in Paris, footing the bill. Julia eagerly awaited the end of the school term, dreaming of leaving her small town behind for a new country, city, and school where she could reach her full potential.

She didn’t hate it here. Her life was fine. She had good friends, and her dad was around. But everything was predictable and old.

The mayor refused to change any buildings for conservation reasons. The town had a sad history, which only attracted a few tourists each year. Only a few interesting facts made up most of the history. City kids would come and cause trouble, trying to show off. But when they got caught, they would either go to jail or run away. Last year, they drove a jeep into the lake. The year before, they got lost in the woods.

Julia paused her thoughts when she heard someone sobbing. The front walls had seven mirrors and newly installed tapes and basins. Two weeks ago, someone smashed all the basins.

The toilets were empty when she entered. There were seven stalls, all unusable. The first three stalls had open doors with scribbles of dicks on the walls.

There was a sobbing sound. She called out, Who’s there?

No one replied.

If it was one boy, she would have him expelled. Hopefully, it was Catherine.

Julia hurried to the stalls and opened the first door. Immediately, Fat Cat let out a loud gasp. There she was, sitting with her ancient flip phone, tears streaming down her face. As usual, she was a mess.

Her curly black hair was untidy, and her uniform had missing buttons. Instead of the school skirt, she wore old blue pants. Even her brown shoes looked torn and dirty.. Her swollen neck almost swallowed her head, and it was a miracle she could see through her puffy cheeks.

The toilet seat creaked under her weight, threatening to fall apart. The worst part was the smell. It was clear she hadn’t showered in days, making it difficult for Julia to stand in front of her.

Get out! Julia ordered, causing the girl to get up. However, she made a disgusting face and sat back down, eventually vomiting all over herself.

Julia cursed and backed away, overwhelmed by the horrid smell. The vomit, in blue, black, and white, ran all over Fat Cat’s chest. It was as if she had been eating rainbows.

Kamila swiftly entered the washroom but froze upon seeing Julia’s horrified expression. She quickly took out her phone and snapped photos of Julia and Fat Cat. She then cruelly offered some advice, saying, Disgusting, pig! Just kill yourself! With a smile, she pulled Julia by the left arm out of the washroom.

How messed up was that? she asked, pausing as a schoolteacher walked past them.

The school hallways were not very busy in the early morning. The hallway had lockers, washrooms, and the teachers’ lounge.

The next hallway led to lecture rooms and workshops. There was a distinct smell of sandalwood coming from that direction.

However, Julia could still smell that awful Fat Cat.

Kamila quickly fixed this with sprays from a bottle of ‘La Chi’ perfume. Julia wasn’t sure if it was an Asian product, but it smelled amazing. Lately, she had been against animal testing then realized there were more important things to fight for and better ways to do it. There were humans wasting everyone’s resources. There were smarter and more talented students out there.

Fat Cat contributed nothing to the school. The only things she was good at were crying and eating.

Kamila was going through her phone and quickly edited Fat Cat’s vomit photo. She was skilled at these things, sometimes even better than Julia. Julia kept Kamila on her toes and always boasted about it.

Julia was almost 6 feet tall, shorter than Kamila. She wore the school uniform provocatively. She had beautiful shoulder-length blonde hair and perfect, natural cheeks.

Kamila looked up from her phone and asked, Can you believe what just happened? It was so messed up. How is she still here? Wasn’t she suspended or something? Kamila paused as another teacher walked past them. She glanced over her shoulder towards the entrance of the hallway, which led to the teachers’ private parking.

Occasionally, teachers would come and go from the building, but very few of them paid attention to the two girls lingering in front of the bathroom. Kamila lowered her voice and said, I heard she was involved with one of the...

May screamed, Hey, bitches! and hugged the two girls. She had a reputation for being loud and always seeking attention. Her uniform was tight, emphasizing her curves. She wore high heels to appear taller next to her friends.

May came from a wealthy family that had been supporting the school for years. She asked, Why are you in front of the bathroom?

Kamila quickly warned her, I wouldn’t go in there!

Now I want to look! May exclaimed happily for no apparent reason. Kamila rolled her eyes and showed her phone’s screen. May burst into loud laughter, which sounded more like an otter trying to get a date.

James Todd, one of the junior teachers, noticed the commotion and started walking towards the girls. Julia quickly walked away, with the other girls following suit.

James Todd paused and looked at the girls and then at the door to the loo. He was 5 foot 3 tall, had small black hair, black eyes, and a weak jawline. He was out of shape, with a growing gut. His face appeared tightly pressed together. He lived with his mum and didn’t have a girlfriend. Perhaps he had issues with his mother, which led to his behaviour. What a sad little man!

There were students at their lockers. Some had to reset their passwords every month. The lockers were solid and hard to break into.

Julia focused on one student, Jarod Gibbs.

He was short, wore nerdy glasses, and had a hunchback. He struggled to open his locker, sweating profusely.

He apologized to three large boys from the rugby team who bumped into him. They laughed and walked away. Jarod adjusted his glasses and tried again.

May and Kamila shared the phone screen, where May pointed to the screen and said, Breakfast time.

Kamila’s habit of sucking the tip of her thumb always annoyed Julia. Kamila noticed Julia looking at her and stopped.

May asked, Did Camel toe transfer somewhere?

Julia and Kamil shrugged.

Julia couldn’t remember Camel toe’s real name. Everyone had pet names, making it easy to forget.

Kamila informed her, I heard her brother stayed behind.

Julia thought for a moment and muttered, The grease monkey. She couldn’t recall his name either, but he worked at the local garage.

It was the only one that serviced electric vehicles, so she often saw him there. Back in her first year, he had been a senior. Julia remembered how he used to look at her, as if he wanted to say something, but never did.

Kamila and May laughed when someone opened their locker, and things fell loudly to the floor. The girl had a mirror, a diary, and some other junk.

She wore glasses, had big bushy red hair, and looked pale, maybe Russian. Students called her carrot head.

She was skinny and tall, and considered herself a science genius. She was running for student president and at first Julia thought little of her, but she had support behind her. Both her parents were politicians.

The boys from the rugby team quickly helped the carrot-headed girl. She smiled and pushed her hair behind her left ear, clearly flirting. She enjoyed the attention. Considering her a freak, they had no interest in someone like her. They believed she had nothing to offer and no personality. They saw her as just a robot.

The principal’s voice came over the PA system, announcing, Attention, students! Some speakers didn’t work properly, so the students gathered in the hallway to hear the message. The principal continued, Please meet in the gymnasium.

May asked, An assembly? She acted as if the principal had asked her to do something nasty.

Kamila checked her reflection on her phone and asked, What do you think that’s about?

Pouting her lips, Julia suggested, Let’s go before all the suitable spots get taken.

Towards the end of the hallway, she guided her team to the classrooms that the staff had set up for the day. The staff had already prepared 100-inch television screens with lessons.

Teachers quickly exited the classrooms, locking up after themselves. Both teachers and students had received no prior notice about the assembly and had to rush over.

Julia couldn’t find her favourite teacher, who had a foreign accent and always smelled nice. He was supposed to get engaged soon, but things had a way of getting out of hand.

The gym was filling up quickly. The girls found good seats in plastic chairs. Students were setting up chairs and looked over at the girls, maybe to ask for help.

The response they would get was, Fuck off.

Julia hoped no one would try to talk to her. She hated being stuck in the middle of a crowd. She purposely chose seats on the left side of the gym, close to the secondary exit. If they needed to leave suddenly, everyone would go for the main exit. In the event of a dangerous situation, like a shooter storming in, they would likely use the main entrance.

Julia had planned for everything, but as more students arrived, the noise level grew louder and louder. It became so overwhelming that she couldn’t even hear herself think. She regretted not taking her earphones out of her locker before coming here.

One teacher, who looked greasy, called out for the students to move to the front, where there was more space. However, the girls ignored him, though some students moved. Some teachers could be real assholes, Julia thought. Maybe they didn’t have any love at home, or they just wanted to act tough at work while being mean at home.

The school was tough for both students and teachers. They had a point system in place, which seemed fair. The school would take away certain privileges when the points dropped to a certain level. The school would offer special privileges when students and teachers achieved points above benchmarks.

The boys from the archery team stood around the girls, all smelling like blue cheese. They didn’t seem impressive but stood confidently. The girls on the archery team thought they were the hottest in town, but they weren’t in shape and thought carrying a quiver made them look sexy.

The boys from the rugby team were noisy as usual, maybe even playfully throwing punches.

May was looking for someone, moaning about her missing boyfriend.

Bach was running for school president and had the crowd’s support. He was popular and having May by his side boosted him.

The P.E teacher snuck into the crowd of students, trying not to stand out. He was a short man with an enormous belly. He had a black Mustache that made him look unsettling, especially the way he looked at the girls. Students nicknamed him Nando, which he disliked, but it stuck.

He wanted the school to introduce cricket, but they refused. So, he coached the Rugby team, but they also refused. In the end, he became the netball coach for a group of girls who despised him.

He approached Kamila from behind, emanating the scent of coconut oil. He had applied a generous amount to his black hair, giving him a pimp-like appearance. His breath reeked of inexpensive alcohol, causing the girls to hold their noses. Perhaps interpreting this as disrespect, he moved away.

May informed Kamila, Your girlfriend is staring at you, prompting Kamila to cover her face with her hand.

Kamila complained, For God’s sake! I only spoke to her once, and now she won’t leave me alone. I was just trying to be nice.

They were talking about Red Becca, also known as Becca or Rebecca.

Becca had taken a seat on the other side of the gym, surrounded by her group of muscular women. They spent hours at the workout centre, trying to appear as big as possible. Their school shirts struggled to contain their bulging biceps, and they proudly wore rainbow-colored armbands.

Becca was a large, pale girl with short, black hair. She had a strong, soldier-like face and never wore makeup. However, her eyebrows and eyelashes always looked pampered. Her nose was horribly large, and her lips were small, making her nose stand out even more.

Her dad was in prison, and her mom owned a cleaning business. Becca wanted to join the police force, and Kamila was her easiest way in. Just one word from her father, and Becca could get in. But did she really deserve it? She was an average student and never put in much effort. Instead of studying harder and training more, she wanted