~Chapter 1~

“Honey! If you don’t hurry, you’re going to be late for your first day of high school!” my mother called.
“Yeah, yeah I’m coming.” I grumbled, slowly dragging my feet out of bed. I wearily put on the closest things to me, hoping that they matched. Quickly walking towards the bathroom, I brushed my teeth and combed through my long curly red hair. Briskly scanning my appearance, I dubbed that I didn’t have anything sticking out and my shirt was on correctly so I was ok. One glance at the time sent me racing downstairs, grabbing my lunch and an apple and dashing for the bus. I just barely made it on time. The bus driver, a chubby black lady, bore holes through my forehead and I knew this was going to be a long year. I scanned the bus for an empty seat and found what I was looking for in the very back. Next to all the nerds and uncool people, I thought to myself, mentally slapping myself for not getting here on time. I sat down next to this devilishly hot guy with sandy blonde hair and mocha chocolate eyes. I turned away and grabbed my IPod, sticking the ear buds in and hopefully ending any conversation the guy next to me might try to make. I didn’t want to say anything stupid in front of him on my first day! He obviously had other plans. Although I had turned away from him, he was persistent in getting my attention until I had no choice but to turn off my IPod and listen to what he had to say.
“Hey, my name’s Marcus but everyone just calls me Mark.” He said, and he stretched out his hand, waiting for mine so he could shake my hand. Reluctantly, I did what he wanted me to.
“I’m Trisha and I can go by whatever; most call me Trish though.”
“Mhm yeah I know…I mean that’s really common.” He said, flustered. Well, that was odd

, I thought. Mark chuckled nervously.
“Yeah I guess so,” I said, “So was there some special reason why you wanted to talk to me or are you just completely bored or something.” I looked away and rolled my eyes. I didn’t really feel like talking to this guy anymore; hot or no.
“Well, actually I was wondering if I could tag along with you today. I’m kind of new here and well, it’d be nice to have someone to point me in the right direction.” He replied.
“Hate to break it to you, but just about everybody on this bus is new. This is the freshman bus, aka the bus filled with newbs.” I said sarcasm evident.
“Oh, uh well then can I just stick with you because we kind of ‘know each other’. You’re, I guess, a familiar face.” He said, almost pleading. What was up with this guy?
“Um how can you be familiar with my face when we’ve only known each other for about five minutes?” I said, really peeved. This guy was a strange one that was for sure. I mean talk about desperate!
“Ok well this might sound weird, but I feel like I’ve known you forever! You look a lot like someone I know. Like, A LOT alike.” Mark said with so much conviction, I was close to having pity on the poor, lost soul. Almost, but not quite.
“I’m sorry but THAT is just plain creepy! I really would like to be left alone thank you very much!” I said turning my back on him. Suddenly, the bus hit a bump and I was flung over to his side of the seat. When I finally opened my eyes, I found myself sitting on his lap! He was grinning like a madman and I turned the shade of my hair!
“Ohmygosh! Talk about klutzy!” I said rambling, “I am really sorry about that…” I faded away as I turned to look up into those deep, chocolate eyes of his. As, I got up to scoot back over to my side of the seat, I brushed up against his chest. Gosh, I could feel his abs under his shirt! Mark looked amused at the face I must have been making. This guy was gorgeous and had a pack! Maybe I should let him tag along. It would make a good impression on the first day… “Ok sure I’ll help you along today though I can’t tell you that I can help you much. I’m as new as you are. I guess we’ll have to figure this place out together.” I mentally kicked myself for saying such a sappy remark. Mark just beamed. It made me happy to see him smile like that. Geez, he had a nice smile...NO! I was not going down THAT road! I had just met the guy and he needed a friend so I would be just that and nothing more. The bus rolled to a squeaky stop and I looked out onto the campus that would be my prison for the next four years. If we didn’t move again, that is.

The campus was huge by the looks of it. Well cared for too. Mom picked a nice spot! Rose bushes grew along the sidewalk into the school and the grass was lush and properly groomed. It was all so orderly! I was afraid to walk for fear of ruining the prestige of it all! I walked into the main office. They might as well call it the office for the freshman because all around me were new guys like myself, getting information on where the heck to go and how to get there! Mark had grabbed a map and I found our names amongst a pile of period schedules. I grabbed ours and ran out of the office as fast as I could. I didn’t like being around so many people at once. Mark had followed me and now he stood, consulting the map on how to get to our first period class before the bell rang which, conveniently, we had the same room. All we had to do was find it. I stunk at reading maps so I left that job up to Mark and stood next to him, trying to look smart and on top of things, which I wasn’t. Duh…

“You know, Trisha, you are really special and you don’t even know it yet.” Um ok? Weird comment from the peanut gallery there. I decided to let that one slide and continued as I was. Mark seemed to have found the room we were looking for because he had started to walk down the hall. I doggedly followed behind him, forgetting about my ‘on top of things’ act. Some chick in the halls started to make goo-goo eyes at Mark. I grabbed his arm and pulled him close to me. I looked back at her as if to say, sorry sista! He is all mine! Boohoo, too bad for you!

Mark chuckled and wrapped his arm around my waist. He was going along with the act but I have to admit, I liked it. The girl pouted and kept walking. I smiled and kept on walking, wondering if Mark would let go of my waist. He didn’t but I wasn’t about to tell him to stop. We reached our destination, and after introducing ourselves to the teacher, we took our seats by the window. The bell rang and everyone scrambled for a seat. Our new English teacher wrote his name on the board. For an older guy, he was a sight for sore eyes! Some of the girls were actually trying to get his attention! Ok, that was a little gross and desperate but heck; I’ve got Mark to play around with so I’m good,

I thought! Of course we weren’t going out or anything! It was just an act I had to remind myself. The teacher cleared his throat and began to introduce himself.
“Hi class, I’m Mr. Retallio and I’m going to keep introductions short because who likes lectures right?” he said and I was pretty sure I was going to like this guy, “Please don’t talk out in class, no PDA or excuses. Oh, and tardy people really annoy me so be on time or my wrath shall fall on you!” He said in a funny accent and all you girls giggled. “Other than that, try to learn something this year and we’ll get along fine! I can’t think of any other rules right now but if I have to, I can make them up along the way. In a moment I will call out each of your names and give you your locker numbers. Then, I’ll give you time to put your things in there and get settled. I don’t really have a lesson planned for today so you can chat after that.” He said, “Ok when I call your name, please come up to the front and I’ll hand you a number and a map to find that number locker. Let’s begin! Alisha Conner!” He yelled and that snooty girl who was checking Mark out in the hall walked forward. I thought, just my luck but then it only seemed to get worse. It seemed she had some buddies in this class and each one of them was matched in heel size, skirt length, and attitude problems. Some cute guys walked up that I would have to look into later and then my name was called. Mr. Retallio handed me a number. He then called Mark. I saw that my number was 4068 in hall B and Mark saw it too. Mr. Retallio handed him a number but Mark flicked his arm and handed the number back. Then, Mr. Retallio’s eyes got all fuzzy and he handed Mark a different sheet. His eyes looked like they were on fire then,
“I guess I handed you the wrong sheet. Here you go, Mark.” He said in a rather off voice. Mark looked down and smiled. Then, he looked up at me.
“What number do you have?” He asked.
“Locker number 4068 in hall B, what about you?” I asked in reply.
“Same except I’m 4069.” He said smiling.
“Uh ok, well how did that happen? I mean that was totally weird! Did you see Mr. Retallio’s eyes? It looked like they were burning!” I said rather freaked out by the whole thing.
“So she is the one then.” Mark muttered under his breath but I could hear him.
“I’m the what? Ok what is going on?” I was practically yelling.
“I can’t tell you right now but I will, I promise.” Mark said then he walked out of the classroom, knowing I would follow since our lockers were next to each other.


Once we got to our designated lockers I looked them over and smiled. They were the kind that went from the floor up to my head and when I opened it up, I found there was plenty of room to put all my things in; I could even hang up some clothes if I wanted to! This school must be huge, I thought, to be able to give every student lockers this big! I could get used to this! This really pale kid came up on my other side and opened the locker next to me. Mark saw who it was and growled. I spun around to look at him. He looked like he was ready to punch the guy. Huh? I thought. I guess they had a history, just great. The kid was skinny with pale blonde hair, almost as light as his skin. He had piercing, ice blue eyes that looked almost soul-searching. He had a very cold aura about him that made me step back. I was not a big fan of the cold myself. I lived in Florida and still hated the winters! He briskly looked over the locker, and then slammed it shut and looked at me. He gave me an evil smile and I took another step back, almost bumping into Mark who had done the opposite of me and had stepped forward, towards the creepy kid. Mark grabbed my arm and pulled me behind him. The pale kid looked amused and deadly. I really wanted to get away from him. I wanted to go home and curl up in a ball on my bed. His presence was freezing me! I started to shiver. Suddenly, he moved at the speed of light and was behind me. The pale kid roughly grabbed my arm, pulling up the sleeve of my shirt. He saw the birthmark on my shoulder and smiled, but his smile held no happiness, only malice. I struggled under his death hold, but he only tightened his grip. In the blink of an eye, we were outside on the manicured school lawns. Mark had somehow kept up with this fast superman-like kid.
“Let. Her. Go.” Mark growled. It was a direct order and I got the feeling that this shrimpy looking kid who actually was quite strong would still not be a match for Mark.
“Make me.” The pale kid said calmly.
“Euclise, drop the girl or I will have no choice but to hurt you, revealing everything before it’s time.” Mark said in a deeper voice than before. Reveal things before it was time? WHAT?! I was so confused! The pale kid, Euclise apparently, began to twist my arm in directions it was not meant to go in and I yelped as pain shot up my body.
“Ok that’s it!” Mark said and I gasped as flames shot up from his hand. He threw the flames at the pale kid but a wall of ice suddenly shot up from the ground. Then, the pale kid banged me in the head and everything went black.


I finally came to after what seemed like days and yet my head was still throbbing. That guy had whacked me pretty hard! Everything was swirling around so I closed my eyes. I could hear someone calling my name, but it seemed so distant that I paid no attention to it. Finally, my head stopped pounding and was now down to a dull thudding so I decided to brave it and open my eyes once more. Things were still blurry, but after a moment or two, the world stopped turning like a whirling dervish and I saw Mark peering down at me.
“Trisha? Are you awake?” he said with concern.
“No you idiot I am sleeping with my eyes open!” I snapped, suddenly remembering all that had happened and wanting information, now. “Ok so what the HECK happened back there! So this pale guy comes up. Starts checking my birthmark out and then grabs me. Suddenly I’m outside and you have freaking FIRE in your HANDS and you throw it at him! Then, there is an ICE WALL! IN THE MIDDLE OF AUGUST! IN SOUTHERN FLORIDA!!! Do you know how wrong this whole thing is?! What the heck is going on? I want some answers!” I demanded, wanted to stamp my feet but I was lying on a bed and I was too tired to get up.
“Calm down Trish! Remember to keep breathing! I’m just glad you’re ok! I am so sorry I let that happen to you! I was supposed to keep you safe but I failed and I should be ashamed of myself! My one task and I blow it on the first day!” Mark said with so much despair that I want to hug him but then a word stands out to me and I stop, completely confused.
“Wait you’re supposed to protect me? What the heck? Why would I need protection? I’m no one of importance! Until today, I haven’t been attacked by anyone! Plus how would you know about me? I mean, didn’t we just meet today? This isn’t making any sense!” I sighed, thoroughly exasperated!
“Well I guess I will have to tell you now.” Mark said and I got the idea that I was in for a long story, “It all begins many, many, MANY years ago when man began to first mess with something now called DNA but at the time they didn’t know that. Anyways, they messed with some people’s DNA giving them, strange abilities. Suddenly, one could control fire just by calling it in his mind. He thought about it really hard and BOOM there it was in the palm of his hand! He could burn into peoples mind temporarily and could shoot the fire out of his palms! He could create walls of fire and, the best of all, he could form the fire into the image of a dragon that was very powerful and destructive. He found he could only do this once though. There was another, though, that had his DNA spliced up. He could control frozen water. He was an almost perfect opposite of the other. He could turn even the air into ice. He could turn water into wicked sharp needles and shoot them through the air, could create ice walls, and throw ice rocks through the air at high speeds. Both men were now very powerful and very dangerous but they were mistakes. The people working on the men decided to end the experiment and tried to put them down like dogs but the men killed all the scientists. The men decided to buy their own island with the scientist’s money and live there were they could be in peace without people judging them by their funky powers. They soon became lonely and decided to bring some ladies onto their island. They married two women and had kids and their kids had kids and so on and so forth till the whole island was overpopulated. One day, an ice guy killed a fire guy and ordered that all fire people should leave the island. The fire people didn’t want to leave and said that because they killed one of their men, the ice guys should leave! What was a little dispute turned into a bloody war and many lives were lost. The fire and ice people conquered more islands for the different races and the population of both is growing.” I sat there processing all that information and let Mark get a breath!
“Ok so wait, there are people with powers fighting over some islands and this applies to me how? And by the way this is all completely crazy and slightly confusing!” I said, still trying to process al this information. Mark obviously saw the look on my face and started to better explain the whole situation because he was being rather vague.
“Ok, well here’s the thing: I am a descendent of the first guy, Robert Paine, who had his DNA spliced and could control fire. I have the power to summon fire and bend it to my will. I am a more powerful bender and I can even summon the dragon, though I will only be able to do it once so I am saving it for a very special time.” I gasped! So he could control fire? But that was impossible, right? He had done it before and I had seen it so I had no choice but to believe him, and I guess that explained the ice wall from the other dude.
“So how do you know you can create the dragon if you haven’t ever tried it?” I asked because my brain had stopped working properly at “I can summon fire” and I had nothing better to say. Marcus took off his shirt and I had to bite my lip to keep from gasping. He had a perfect tan and some nice abs! He turned so I could see his shoulder and there, right below, was the fuzzy image of a dragon!
“Whoa! Since when have you had that?” I asked.
“Since I was born. I’ve had this mark and it proves that I can summon the dragon.” He said.
“Ok, ok so let’s pretend this is real and not some crazy dream. If you have this war and all, then why are you here protecting me?” I asked. Mark sighed and put his shirt back on.
“I can’t tell you that right now. It’s way too soon. You wouldn’t be able to process it. Just understand this; the ice generation is trying to kill you. And it’s my job to keep you safe.”


I didn’t give all that Mark had said much thought because I knew that this was all my imagination. Gosh, when I got bashed in the head, I probably got my brains scrambled a bit and I was now hallucinating all this! I looked around to see that I was in the school nurses office and most of the day had gone by. What a great first day of school… I tried to get up but started to feel woozy so Mark pushed me back down on the bed.
“Gosh, first day of school and I already have haters.” I mumbled, trying to sound happier than I was. At this rate, I’d have to call my mom to come and drive me home herself. She really hated that. There was a reason why I took the bus. Mark looked really worried.
“Trish, you have a bump the size of my fist on your forehead and you look really pale.” He said, “Please don’t tell me that on top of you getting bashed, your now worried about what I told you! I mean, I probably should have waited but—“ He was cut off because I butted in my thoughts.
“Ok look!” I said, “A) I will be fine B) you’re officially crazy and C) the whole thing with the fire and ice people is definitely my brain going wacko from the fun little experience today. Anything new you want to lay on me? Since I’m completely wacked, I’m in the right mind set to play Dr. Phil. So lay it on me because I can definitely take it!” Mark gripped my arms and looked like he was about to say something, but stopped.
“Yeah you’re probably right. That could never happen.” He said, almost with defeat in his voice, “Did you eat something funny for breakfast? I mean, fire in my hand? Really?” He tried to shake off all he had said. All I can say is this; I was officially crazy.
“I think I just need to go home and forget all about this.” I said.
“Well my family lives at the end of your street. Want me to drop you off at your house?” Mark asked me.
“Really? Thanks Mark! You’re a life-saver!” I exclaimed.
“Not very good at it, am I?” He muttered under his breath. I close to ignore that because today, I didn’t need anything else weird to happen to me. Mark signed me out of school and picked me up off of the bed, carrying me out of the nurse’s office and down the hall. I think I saw a girl swoon! Ha! I swelled with pride at how sappy this looked because it would make every girl within a mile radius wish she were me! Point for Trisha in the popularity game! Mark swung open the front door to the school and pressed a button on his phone. Then, I remembered something. Mark took the bus today at school. How was he going to drive me home without a car? How did he know HOW to drive by himself? He should’ve only had his permit! Before I could ask him any of this, he pulled a little needle out of a compartment on his phone and pricked my finger! Ow, I thought! What was that for?! Then everything got kind of blurry and before I sank into the arms of Morpheus, I thought, Ohmygosh is Mark actually kidnapping me or something?!


~Chapter 2~
When I awoke, I was at my house, lying in my bed. WTH? How’d I get here? I thought. I looked down at my finger, which was now slightly throbbing. Oh right, I had gotten kidnapped and sent to my house; right. I rolled my eyes and got up out of bed. I wondered where Mark had gone and why he had put me to sleep. Usually when I need a lift home, I hop into a car and they drive me home. It never involved sleeping until now. I looked up into the mirror and almost shrieked at my appearance! I needed a shower before the neighbors saw me like this or worse; my brother with a cellphone!!! I dashed down the hall and jumped into the bathroom before anyone saw me. Locking the door, I began to undress and turned on the water. I stepped under the warm rain shower and sighed. This was feeling like heaven. After a while, I hopped out, feeling a whole heck of a lot better and decided to get online. I didn’t really go to school so if we had homework I didn’t know what it was and didn’t feel like investigating. I checked my email first. Tons of emails from my old friends from middle school flooded my inbox. All of them pretty much said the same thing; so how was your first day? Well, to be honest, it sucked and I can only remember half of it and I’m pretty sure a lot of it I made up because I got whacked in the head by some dude with tanning issues! I had met Mark though, I thought smiling, then remembering what he had done last, the smile faded. Man, he sure was weird! I really wished I had his number so I could call him and figure out what the heck the sleeping stuff was for! Then I remembered that he said he lived near me! Where exactly? I thought, trying really hard to remember. Oh yeah! The end of the road! Since one end of my street ended with a park, I could assume he lived on the other side and one house was now empty because the owners had moved whereas the other had just been sold! Perfect! I know where he lives! Man, I am such a stalker! Not really caring whether he thought I was one or not, I logged out of my email and bounded down the stairs to the front door with a spring in my step. Maybe it was my new sense of purpose, I thought.
“I’ll be back in an hour or so!” I screamed to my mom, who, I hope was listening and slammed the front door behind me. It was a short walk down the road and in less than a minute, I was standing out in front of his house. I walked up the manicured driveway seeing that the grass was all cut and the lawn was orderly and clean-looking. I got up to the front door and knocked. Mark answered the door with a look of surprise on his face. Well buddy, I thought, if you’re going to knock a body out, you better be ready for the questions that are sure to come afterwards!
“Trisha, what are you doing here?” Mark asked.
“Oh nothing much I was just wondering why the HECK you knocked me out and then suddenly I am lying on my bed!” I said, not caring that my voice was a little bit loud.
“Ok look, calm down. You probably just fainted. You had a big day and the heat was too much I guess.” He said calmly. I looked at him thinking, what a bunch of bullcrap!
“Do I look like the type of girl who faints in the heat? If anything, I would faint from cold weather! I hate cold weather whereas I could probably touch a fire and think, ah nice and warm! Perfect!” I said, staring at him.
“You sure could.” He muttered, probably not wanting me to hear that but I have some dang good ears.
“What the heck is THAT supposed to mean?” I asked.
“Nothing, forget I said it.” Mark replied, “Wanna come in?” He said looking calm.
“Uh sure,” I said, “If it’s ok with your folks.”
“Actually, I kind of live alone.” Mark said sheepishly, as if he had stolen a lollipop from the store and was now admitting it to his mom. I blinked.
“And you are how old?” I asked.
“I’m 15, duh. Just like you and just about every other freshman in the world.” He said.
“And you live alone? Don’t you know that’s illegal?” I shouted at him, “How you do get around since you can’t drive. How do you earn money?”
“Do you really want to know that?” he said seductively and I realized that he had somehow gotten behind me and was whispering in my ear. His fingers trailed down my neck and I shuttered. I had just met the guy but sometimes I felt like I had known him my whole life and he was “the one”. I laughed, thinking of the stupidity of what I had just thought about! Mark looked at me funny and I realized he had stopped a long time ago. Opps.
“Actually,” I said, responding to his question, “I really don’t, thank you very much! I much rather think of you as innocent little Marcus whose last name I don’t know.” I said, realizing that I truly didn’t know his last name, but felt I should after all that had maybe happened today.
“Marcus Crosswight.” He said, laughing, “And you? I don’t know your last name either.” “It’s Harrington. I’m Trisha Harrington.” I said. “Ok then, now that that’s done…” Mark said and he pulled me into his home and shut the door.


I looked around his house and pretty much all I saw were boxes…everywhere.
“So when did you move in?” I asked Mark, who was following me around his house like a puppy. He could give me a tour...
“I got here about two weeks ago.” He replied.
“Ok so where did you live before here; a place where it was legal to live alone at 15?” I asked him sarcastically.
“It’s a place you’ve probably never heard about. There was a lot of…fighting there and so I left. I was sick of all the drama. Actually, they sent me here.” He said.
“Oh, why did they send you?” I asked him, curious now.
“Um…I’ll tell you later. I mean it is the first day I’ve met you!” he said kind of nervously. Odd?
“Ok well you have any food around here? I’m starving!” I said, dropping our previous subject.
“Want some popcorn?” he asked.
“Only if a movie comes with it!” I said laughing.
“Deal. What do you want to watch? I’ve got it all! I basically collect movies!” Marcus said, grinning.
“Let’s watch something young and totally corny!” I replied, “I love making fun of kid flicks! You got ‘Despicable Me’? I love the minions!”
“Yeah!” he said, “I love the minions! I want a couple of my own!”
“Don’t we all?” I said and I starting walking back to the kitchen. Ten minutes later, we were sitting down in front of the newly plugged in TV, laughing our butts off! I had texted my mom, saying I’d be back a little later than expected. I felt something hit my face and pealed my eyes off the screen to see Mark trying to hide a grin.
“Did you just throw popcorn at me?” I said in my bad girl voice.
“Maybe I did and maybe I didn’t.” He said, still trying to suppress a grin.
“Oh it’s on!” I laughed and the popcorn war began. In five minutes, we were surrounded by popcorn, lying on the floor, in so much pain from laughing!
“Stop! Stop! I give up!” Mark said, moaning. I lay there, clutching my belly. Silence laughter was racking my body to the point that I had tears streaming down my face! I slowly began to calm down and said,
“See, I told you I’d win.” I turned over and smiled. I felt a shiver course through my body when I realized he had been staring at me! I probably looked horrible with popcorn stuck in my hair and my makeup smudged down my face! I would’ve looked like a popcorn loving emo! He laughed, as if he could read my thoughts and turned on his back. God in heaven, it was late but he was so fine! Haha, look at me; falling for a guy in one day! That was probably a record! Hmm, maybe I should call Guinness… I turned over and moaned. I was so tired and my body ached from being pricked, bashed, and popcorn-mutilated all in one day! I turned and said,
“Mark, thanks for everything. If you want, I can help you clean up this mess and then I think I should leave. I’m pretty tired after all this.” I said, motioning to the popcorn sprawled about the room.
“No I’ve got it. This will be a good way to test out the new vacuum cleaner.” Mark said, smiling.
“Ok then! I’ll see you tomorrow for my REAL first day of school!” I said, letting myself out. I walked back to my house, my feet dragging. I had underestimated just how tired I really was! I reached my house just barely and as I reached to open the door, black spots entered my field of vision and I collapsed.


~Chapter 3~
(From Marcus’s POV)
I started on the mess Trisha and I had created, reached into the closet for my new vacuum. Everything is going as planned except for one thing; I never expected Trisha to be so…beautiful. I thought, wistfully. I didn’t want to drag her into the war, but it was looking like I had no choice. I had just gotten a message. Ice was winning big time and fire was running out of time and men. Also, the ice generations were looking for Trisha, too. I sighed. I couldn’t wait for this whole mess to be over. I sighed once more as I looked about the room. I had to find out how to use this thing. I looked on the vacuum for some kind of on button. Finding what I was looking for, I straightened up and checked on Trisha using a fire mind sweeping spell. I gasped! She had collapsed on the ground! Oh crap! What now?! She was fine five minutes ago! I relayed all that had happened, trying to think of any sort of breach that may have happened. I checked on her once more. There was someone approaching. It was Euclise!
“Oh crap! Oh crap, I have to hurry!” I yelled and I raced out the door, with the vacuum still on and buzzing about my home!


I reached Trisha just in time! Euclise hadn’t touched her yet!
“You’re getting slower, Marcus. What took you so long?” Euclise asked, ice puffing out of his mouth as he spook. The air around him was ten degrees colder in that one second and it kept dropping at a freakish rate. Trisha began to violently shiver as Euclise bent down over her. He’s going to freeze her inner fire! I thought as Euclise stretched out his hand, ice swirling around on his palm. I growled and burst into action! My palms were already lit because of my anger and I flung them at the swirling vortex on his palm. I didn’t miss. I never miss. Many long hours of training have helped me achieve that and for once I was grateful! Euclise snarled and stood up, facing me and getting into battle stance. I placed a ring of shape-shifting fire around us so that normal humans couldn’t see us. Euclise spit on the ground, disgusted by all the heat. On his side, he placed an ice barrier behind the fire to block the heat. I smirked. That wouldn’t last long. Fire trumps ice in this case! The barrier would surely melt. My eyes grew huge as saucers and I gasped. Euclise smiled evilly as he flicked his hand and the ice melting into water at his will and start to writhe in the air, dousing out the fire barrier I had made! Oh no, he was one of the Gifted! I don’t know if I can win anymore! He replaced my fire barrier with one of ice. “Ah much better. Now I can beat you more comfortably!” Euclise said and he laughed. It was not joyful but cold and menacing. I shuttered as the temperature started to put out my inner fire! I looked over to Trisha. Her lips were blue and she moaned. I stared at Euclise. He looked at me, amused. I growled. I may not be able to beat him, but I will die trying! Trisha was our only hope and I could tell we would be good friends if given the chance. I wanted that chance. My eyes turned red. My palms were dancing with flames. Steam started to rise from my body. I began to chant, making the flames rise even more! I lunged right at Euclise and I missed! I had grazed him though, and he howled. I screamed for him to shut up and lunged again. He was too busy wallowing in his pain that I knocked him right in the chest! SCORE! I had knocked the wind, or in this case ice, right out of him. The Gifted were prideful and thought no one could hurt them. They got sloppy and I had used this fact to my advantage! I began to cause the fire to writhe in the air, heading straight for Euclise. His eyes grew sizes bigger! Ha! The fire began to wrap him and he screamed! I laughed! I had become bloodthirsty. He had hurt Trisha and I would never allow that again. I wanted to see him in pain; to watch him melt and die! I was hysterical now! My eyes were bloodshot and I couldn’t even see Trisha anymore. I wanted. Him. To. Die! His hand started to flick around, but I failed to notice this because I was in a crazed state that came on during a fight. Suddenly, water started to fly into the air, dousing out the fire holding Euclise captive. It also knocked me straight in the chest, throwing me back! I was shaken out of my blood crazed state and held my head in my hands. I hated when I was like that! It happened when I got really mad! I would get overcome by fire and it would someday be my demise! The fire would envelop me and I would be at my most powerful, but it would later kill me! My fighting instructor told me I had it worse than the other students for some reason. I was very powerful but I could die easier! I had laughed at this at the time. Now, I knew it was true. I looked up to see Euclise. He was badly burned and was limping away. I had to admit, he had saved my life, and Trisha’s and he didn’t know it! I chuckled sadly and shakily stood up. I walked over to Trisha, picked her up, and at the flick of my wrist, the fire and ice barrier was gone and the world could see us once again. I started towards the door and set her on her bed. It was now almost nine. She snuggled into her covers and was asleep fast. I could’ve cried. I had been foolish and I would never let that happen again! From now on, I would be by her side as much as possible! She would never have to endure that while I was watching. I placed a spell with my fire on the house to put everyone to sleep and walked back to my house, shaking in rage at myself. I would make sure my vows were never broken!


~Chapter 4~
(Back to Trisha’s POV)
BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! My hand shot out of the covers and I pressed the snooze button. Nine minutes later, the same routine was going on and I decided to get up. Putting on the first things I saw, I walked downstairs to find everyone sleeping. My mother was snoozing in front of the sink. She was even standing up! I looked around. My dad was asleep in front of the TV. My little sister was on the floor by his feet, asleep also and still holding on to her toys! WTH? How weird! Then, they suddenly woke up and what looked like fire left their bodies! Ok, that was really weird! I grabbed some food and ran to catch the bus! I’d have to figure that one out when I got home or I would be late for school! I already had a rough start and I wanted today to be better. I got to the bus stop to see Mark smiling at me. I waved at him just as the bus rolled up. We both got on and, thank god, we had a different bus lady! This one didn’t seem to hate me but she looked tired! I can relate! I thought. I seemed to be always tired, and hot. No, not beautiful! It always felt like I had some kind of fire burning my body! It was starting to become excruciating! Just thinking about it made it hotter and I winced. Mark looked at me with concern.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Nothing, it’s just really hot! I feel like I’m on fire!” I said, wincing again. His eyes looked sympathetic and he seemed to want to say more but he didn’t. I wondered what he was thinking about. I looked down at my hand. It was red! It looked like it had been sunburned really badly! I gasped as liquid fire seemed to emit from it as well as my other hand! Marcus looked down curiously and then whipped out a cellphone and began to text someone. Odd? It’s kind of a weird time to be texting someone, right? I looked over his shoulder and what he wrote didn’t make any sense. It read; she is making progress way faster than we expected! She going through the first phase and already she’s feeling the pain! I think we should move soon. I looked at him but Mark dismissed me with his hand and sent the text to who knows who! We arrived at school and I reached down to grab my stuff. My arm was turning red! Ohmygosh! What is happening to me, I thought! Mark looked over and his eyes got really big!
“Wow, talk about fast!” he said under his breath. I looked at him funny but kept on walking because if I stopped, I was sure I would burn up and we would be late for class. Both things a definitely didn’t want to experience! Mark grabbed his stuff and ran after me.
“Um Trisha, there is something…interesting…that is going on with your arms and maybe we should go.” He said.
“No way! I already missed my first day and I am NOT missing the next!” I said with defiance. He sighed and said,
“Well, at least let me put something on it so it feels better. This happened to me once and I still have the stuff my mother used when she was alive.” My arms were burning, literally it seemed, so I complied and went with him back outside and around the side of the building. Mark stood in front of me and said,
“Ok, close your eyes because this might sting a little.” I did as he asked me to. I heard him mutter something and then what felt like flames enveloped my arms. I screamed! It hurt so bad, I could hardly take it! I doubled over and Marcus grabbed me. I opened my eyes to see the redness on my arms receding down to my hands, then my fingertips, and finally, it was gone, leaving only a strange little tattoo on my hand. It looked like a dragon and it was inside of a circle. That was definitely not allopathic meds he had just given me, that was for sure! I sighed and hugged him! He stiffened, and then hugged me back.
“Thanks,” I said, “That was really starting to hurt! I don’t know what was happening, but right now, I really don’t care!” I raced back into the school, dragging Mark with me just as the bell was about to ring. Just great!


After what seemed like a lifetime of rules, basic worksheets, and other first day stuff, the bell rang, sounding that it was time for lunch! I raced down the hall, happy to be freed of the endless classrooms! I walked into the cafeteria with Mark and found a seat that was empty except for this really cool looking chick and two guys. We asked if we could sit down.
“Sure,” the girl said, “By the way, I’m Maggie but everyone calls me Mags.” Mags stood up and shook my hand.
“I’m Trisha and this,” I replied, gesturing to Mark, “is Marcus.” He waved timidly.
“Well, this here is Pete and David.” Mags said and they waved at me then Mark, and motioned for him to come sit next to them. Pete was kind of short and had black hair and blue eyes. He had a nice tan and looked pretty strong, despite his size. David was ruggedly handsome with brown hair and green eyes that seemed to have gold flecks in them. They intrigued me and I found myself staring. When he started to look at me funny, I blushed and sat down. Epic fail, Trish…
“So why didn’t I see you yesterday?” Mags asked me.
“Oh, some dude bashed me in the head and I lost consciousness for most of the day.” I said, rather bored. Her eyes got big.
“Dude, that sucks! You ok?”
“Yeah I’m fine…I think at least.” I said laughing. I really liked this girl! We started talking about anything and everything, the guys adding “helpful” comments in here and there but most of the time; they were in their own little world talking about who knows what! During that week, I spent tons of time with Mags and Dave and Pete. Marcus and I had become inseparable! He almost became my own little stalker but I enjoyed his company so I was ok with it. It was Saturday and Mags, David, Pete, Marcus and I were on the phone doing a three-way? Or maybe more like a five-way.
“Hey, y’all I’m totally bored! Let’s go to the mall. Or should we go to a movie?” We all agreed that a movie would be best. Guys don’t like looking at clothes and I’m not too fond of looking at the hottest new video game. I love to play them but for some reason, shopping for them bores the heck out of me!
“Ok then let’s all meet at the theater by the mall in two hours. Everyone game?” Mags asked. I heard a chorus of yes’s and we all hung up. I started to pick out an outfit that wasn’t just thrown on. Right now, my brain was working and so I wanted to look good for once. I found a yellow, billowy shirt with a low neckline and shimmied into some black skinny jeans. I laced up my rocker boots and did my hair and make-up. When I looked in the mirror, I was happy with what I saw and looked at the clock. It was about time to leave so I grabbed my purse, told my mom where I was going, and went out the door. I hoped I wasn’t late for the bus headed in town. I saw Mark walk out of his house and he joined me. We made it just in time. We found a seat at the back.
“How are you doing?” Mark asked.
“I’m good. What movie are we going to see?” I said.
“I have no clue at all! I’m not picky though and you know that!” he said and we both laughed, remembering the time at his house. The bus stopped in front of the mall and we walked across the street. Mags, Pete, and David were already there, waiting for us.
“Hey!” Mags called and rushed over to me. We hugged then she high-fived Mark.
“Y’all ready? So what movie should we see?” David said, looking at previews on the wall out front.
“Ohmygosh! They have Scream 4!!!” Pete squealed and I thought, wow, what a chick move Pete. Mags laughed.
“How are we going to get in? Pose as 18 year olds?” she asked.
“How about we buy tickets to something else at the same price and then sneak in?” Pete said; now back to his serious self. Usually, he was the one who didn’t show much emotion so his little outburst really came as a shocker to those of us who knew him!
“I’m in for anything. I’m really not picky.” Mark said.
“Ok let’s do it!” Mags said, already looking for a movie at the same price.
“We can see more if we go in.” I said.
“Yeah good idea, let’s go!” Mags said, motioning with her hand for everyone to follow her. Of course, they did. I was sure Mags was going to be the first woman president; she was such a leader! Everybody just seemed to want to do what she wanted! It was 10% creepy and 90% totally helpful!
“Hm, let’s get tickets for Rio then go to Scream. It’s across the hall and they are about the same price so we aren’t stealing.” Pete speculated.
“Ya, man that’s perfect; Mags you buy the tickets and make sure to get tons of popcorn with butter!” David said.
“Ok whatever. Men are so useless.” Mags said rolling her eyes and I giggled. She walked off to set our plan into motion and I stood there, feeling kind of useless. Mark came up from behind me and enveloped me in a bear hug. David turned to see and said,
“OH! He got you Trish!” I rolled my eyes and pushed Mark off me. Mark looked at David and he shut up right then. Mags came back with sodas, a large bowl of popcorn with extra butter, and waved tickets in Pete’s face.
“Let’s go everyone!” She said, passing out the tickets and giving the popcorn to David, who would probably eat it all before the movie started. He looked really happy. Go figure. We handed the guy at front our tickets and he ripped it in half and gave us the stub. One by one, we walked past him and I tried not to laugh. We walked toward our movie then walked over to Scream 4, laughing and talking about how we owned the movie people and how great this whole thing was.


Two hours later, we snuck out of Scream and walked past the ticket collector, looking behind us to make sure the cops or FBI weren’t following us! Looking at each other’s faces, we all burst out laughing. Pete looked like he was in a trance.
“I love those movies…” he said, rather dopey looking. I was really starting to wonder about his health! This was definitely not like him. Oh well, I guess a movie can do weird things to men. I looked down at my watch and gasped.
“Ohmygosh guys I almost forgot that I have something today and I really need to go. Now!” I said, racing out of the theater. My friends were following behind me. I turned around, hugged Mags, high-fived the guys and grabbed Mark’s hand. Suddenly, a shiver went up my body, the little tattoo on my hand exploded and I froze!


~Chapter 5~
Mark grabbed my hand and pulled me but I wouldn’t move. Mags gasped and Pete ran to help. David just stood there, looking stupid. Pete started to change. He was taller and his tan darkened. If I was entirely conscious, I would’ve gasped, but since I was a bit tangled up, Mags filled that role for me. Mark looked at Pete.
“You really shouldn’t have done that man. What are we going to do about Mags and Dave?”
“Just enter their mind, Mark, and I’ll handle Trish.” Pete said.
“NO! I am the stronger one here and I should do this. You get them under control.” Pete looked at me with concern and then turned to fill the task at hand. I was losing conciseness of my surroundings but things I couldn’t understand were flashing in front of my retinas. There was a woman. She was cold-looking but very beautiful. It showed her as a baby, but she grew up fast and now stood up, a full adult of maybe 23 or so. She looked ageless and powerful. She had white hair and icy blue eyes. They began to melt and turn the color of a sea during a storm. She started to raise her arms, and ice grew up from the ground. She formed them into horses and they charged into a group of buff, tan men, knocking them all over. She laughed and began to form the horses into other shapes. They became sharp swords and started flying through the air, straight at the men. All were killed. Then, out of the ashes, rose a girl…me! I began to spin and chant and a giant dragon of fire flew behind me! I climbed on him and he blew fire, trying to melt the woman! Then, I began to shake violently and I returned to the present. I saw Pete standing there, two feet taller and heaving fire from his hands! The fire had created a chain from his palms to Mags and David! I screamed for him to stop, but he just looked at me and smiled! Mark grabbed me and shook me, hard.
“What the heck just happened Trisha!” he said, looking me in the eyes.
“I don’t really know. There was this woman, who was beautiful but cold looking. I saw when she was born and in seconds she was a grown woman! Then, she raised her hands and ice came out of the ground! She formed them into horses and they knocked over these tan dudes, then they turned into swords, killing the men. Ok and here’s the weird part. I rose out from the ashes and had this huge dragon thing behind me and it blew fire and tried to melt the woman. Then, you started shaking me! Marcus, am I going crazy?” I pleaded with him. Pete turned to me and Mark turned pale. He whispered,
“Do you think she’s the one controlling the army?” Pete nodded.
“She must’ve seen the future.” Mark said,
“Her powers are growing, even with the binding spell. She needs to leave, now.”
“I agree. It’s time to take her to camp.” Pete said. I looked at Marcus, totally confused. He sighed.
“I’ll explain on the way but right now you need to pack. We’re going on a trip.” I smacked him!
“What are you going on about, Mark! I am not going anywhere and I am sick of all this secrecy! Don’t think I can’t hear you when you mutter under your breath! You are a complete lunatic! A trip?! What’s that code for, huh?! I’m going nowhere with you!” I said, and all the anger that I didn’t even know I had begun to spill out. I felt empowered and had the urge to strangle Marcus. He was nice but he always seemed off, and with all that had happened to me since I’d met him, it annoyed me. My vision turned red and flames danced around the corners. My hands suddenly burst into flames and, might I add, they were huge! Marcus’ eyes turned as big as saucers. I probably would’ve freaked out by now, but with all that had happened to me, I was just amused at Mark’s face. Pete yelped and the flames from his hands started to falter. I felt something warm behind me. I didn’t pay it much mind until it growled. I turned and there, standing behind me, was a dragon and somehow, I knew he was mine. I smiled and turned to face Marcus. His hand went to his mouth and I smirked.
“So, how about you explain why there is a dragon behind me and why all this weird stuff is happening to me, starting with the pale guy on the first day of school.” I said and I found that when I flicked my hand, the flames went away, but the fire dragon stayed by my side. I climbed up his back; don’t ask how I knew it was a boy…I just did. Mark gulped.
“Yup Pete, this is definitely her.” He said and he tried to smile, “I’m glad she’s going to be on our side. Beware, ice scum.” Pete regained his composure and began pointing flames at Mags and David again. I started to feel kind of woozy and when I looked down, the dragon was no longer there! I was falling! Mark ran up and caught me!
“Geez Trisha! You’re going to give me a headache!” he said, trying to smile, “You keep scaring me! Well, I’m pretty sure you don’t need much convincing. You’re not normal, Trish and you need to come with us or the next time someone pisses you off, you’re going to burn them, literally. I’ll take you home and make up some excuse for you to come with us to a special camp for people like you.”


I wasn't normal. I wanted to be but I wasn't. I was still trying to figure out what had happened to me back there as I sat in a car, driving out of town. Mark had told my mom that the school was doing this transfer school type thing and that I wouldn't be back for a while. Strangely enough, my mom just nodded her head, looking kind of fogged up and had moved out of my way so I could go upstairs and pack. I had quickly thrown my things in a duffle and walked out with Mark, feeling a little groggy myself. I didn't really think at the time and now that I was, it was giving me a headache trying to figure all this mess out. We had been driving for almost a day when Mark broke the silence that had descended upon Pete and me.
"We are going to eat, take a break, and then keep driving till we reach Orlando. Then, we have a flight to catch." I thought about all that had happened and asked,
"What's really going on? I know I'm not normal but where are we going?"
"I'll tell you later." Mark said without taking his eyes off the road to look back at me. Pete, who was sitting next to him, took out a map and began to study it. I decided to shut up about it all and just see what happened.

We passed town after town until I saw Mickey Mouse's head poking out of the clouds. The traffic was horrible but after a while, we managed to get to the airport. We just barely made our flight. Half an hour later, we were in the air. I managed to snag the window seat and Mark sat beside me. Pete was on the end, closest to the walkway.
"Ok," I said turning to Mark, "Explain all this please. The flight is an overnight one so we have time." He sighed,
"Ok, well do you remember when I told you about the mutant men with ice and fire powers?" I nodded my head. "Well, this is all about that. Um...what I told you is all true. And...Uh...well I have fire powers and so do you."
"Yeah...I guess I noticed that." I said. He replied,
"Well yes so you need to come with us. You're really important actually."
"I am?" I asked.
"Oh yes! You see, you are a little...different from even us. While I have some cool powers, yours are supposed to be even more powerful." His voice sounded wistful. I blinked.
“Uh, ok. Since I just shot flames from my hands, rode a dragon, and watched little innocent Pete do a flame job on the others, I’m going to try and keep an open mind though let me tell you now that this is a little hard to process. Let me get this straight; there are some mutant freaks with polar opposite powers that are in some battle and I have flame powers and I’m more powerful than normal. And I’m supposed to help win this war for people I don’t even know. And another thing; how’d I even GET these powers or whatever?” I finished, catching my breath and feeling like I was a part of X-Men. (Though I really wouldn’t mind working with Wolverine…) Mark nodded throughout my little story and now he spoke,
“Well, Trisha, your dad is…um how do I put this? He’s not your real dad.”
“WHAT?!” I screamed and Mark clapped a hand over my mouth, reminding me that we were in an airplane.
“Yeah, well your dad actually is where we are going so you can meet him if you want.” Mark said softly. I just sat there glassy eyed. My world was unraveling. Thankfully, Mark went quiet while I tried to process all that was happening. I had powers. People were trying to kill me. My dad wasn’t even my real dad. Was my mom real? I didn’t even know anymore. And trust me; a 15 year old girl shouldn’t have to think about these things. I felt as if the world were pressing down on me. The claustrophobia was killing me and I began to sputter and cough till I felt a warm hand rub my back.
“Hey, it’s ok Trish. I’m here to keep you safe.” Mark broke into my thoughts. It all seemed to suddenly fit into place. Mark didn’t seem so odd when given fire powers.
“Where are we going?” I asked.
“Our base is a couple of islands near the Bahamas. We’ll be going to the Bahamas, and then taking a boat owned by our tribe. Are you afraid of a little water?” Mark asked teasingly, probably hoping to get me to laugh but I merely gave a lopsided grimace.
“I just realized something,” I started, “I never got to say goodbye to Mags or David or my mom or-“I never finished. I just burst into tears. I couldn’t take it anymore. It all was too much. Mark wrapped his arm around my shoulders and let me cry.


~CHAPTER 6~
Several hours later and after a very fitful nap, we landed in the Bahamas. Pete grabbed our stuff while Mark led me outside and hailed a cab. We drove to the docks. The ocean was gorgeous, and that’s saying something considering I’ve spent my whole life growing up next to them. We walked down to the farthest ship. It could hardly be called a ship. More like a dinghy was what I saw. Mark must’ve seen my face because he burst into laughter.
“Sorry milady,” He said with a goofy bow, “Our destination isn’t very far, don’t worry!”
“I just hope we don’t sink before we get there! Are you sure this thing can hold all of us?” I asked, wary.
“Don’t worry! This baby could hold an elephant!” Mark said and I snorted. Yeah right… Carefully, I slowly stepped into the boat. Pete leapt in behind me, causing the boat to rock and I screamed.
“Don’t do that, Pete!” He looked at me, sheepish, and mumbled,
“Sorry about that.” Mark stood, laughing behind us. I harrumphed and he tried to contain his smile, failing miserably. He jumped aboard, more carefully that Pete and we were off. The wind blew my hair back behind me and I felt better than I had in a long time. The only thing that would make this better is a shower…
“Land ahead!” Pete cried and I looked up. Sure enough, there was an island ahead of us. Mark was steering and he pointed the shaft towards it.

About ten minutes later, we were beached. Mark cut the small motor and hopped off onto the sand. I tried to stand, but my legs were all shaky and I fell back on my butt. Feeling rather stupid, I shook my legs and tried again. This time I succeeded in exiting the boat and I smiled. It was then that I began to look around. It was beautiful! Palm trees littered the beach and there was even a mountain in the distance! There were houses on stilts further up shore and some people were walking down to us shouting hellos. They all looked related. Same buff, rugged appearance and killer tan, as if they had been out under the sun every day of their life!
“Mark!” One called, “So this is the one?”
“Yup,” he replied with a nod in my direction, “This is Trish! She’s here to kick some ice people butt!” He pumped his fist and I gulped. Oh dear. This whole situation had trouble written all over it. And I still didn’t entirely know what was going on! I stood awkwardly on the sand with my legs crossed, a sign of embarrassment.
“Um…Hey? Trish; that’s me. So, uh, where exactly are we? Yeah, yeah I heard the whole ‘near the Bahamas’ thing but what island is this?” I said turning mainly to Mark.
“This is a private island owned by my grandfather; the leader of our tribe. We call it Koatsu. It’s our main hub.” He replied with a huge grin. He looked so comfortable here, I couldn’t help but notice. “Here,” he said taking my arm, “I’ll show you around the place.” I gulped and let him lead me around to countless buildings and people. They all gave me that reverent, awe-filled stare. It made a shiver crawl down my back. These people expected so much of me. I hardly knew the half of it. There was one thing I could grasp though, and it was that I wasn’t normal and these people weren’t either. The thought made me relax a little. I wasn’t the only one, alone in this. To top it off, Mark was just like me. I cracked a grin at that, and he started staring at me funny.
“What, do I have something on my face?” He said, and he started scrubbing his head with his hands. I burst out laughing.
“Sorry, I was just thinking.” I said softly, “Can I see my dad? My real dad, I mean.” Mark stopped in his tracks and I heard him inhale.
“Are you sure that’s such a good idea? I mean, you just got here. I should show you to where you’ll be standing. I really think—“He began to ramble on but I cut him off.
“I want to see my real father. I’m tired of wondering. I want answers from him. Please, Mark just take me to my dad.” I begged him. Why did my dad leave? Why’d he leave me with those fake people who called themselves my parents? Why did I have these weird powers? My head was swirling with these questions that I had no answers to. I was getting sick of the powerless feeling. It was time to confront the man who left me. Mark hung his head and sighed.
“Fine, if it’s what you really want.” And with that, Mark began to walk again. He stopped in front of a large shabby building that looked as if it had been used way too much. “This is the hospital.” He said and I just stared at him. The place looked pretty nasty. I mean, really, use some bleach please. Wasn’t this where people were supposed to get HEALED? Seemed to me they would just get worse. Mark walked in, not even acknowledging the grime and dilapidation. I followed behind rather dazed. He walked to the front desk and asked a small portly lady if a man named Paul Hartlet was in. The woman’s face dropped.
“I’m sorry,” she said, “but there can be no visitors right now. Paul Hartlet was just moved to the Emergency Room. An ice team raided one of the more distant island bases and he was sent to help. The ice tribe wiped nearly all of them out. Paul was badly injured and he isn’t expected to live the night.”

~CHAPTER 7~
“WHAT?! No ma’am you don’t understand this man is apparently my father and I have to talk to him!” I screamed. This so wasn’t happening! I find my dad, only to discover that he’s dying! No, no, NO! The nurse looked at me with a mixture of pity and boredom. I wanted to slap her at that moment. I was getting tired of waiting…
“Look lady, I just recently found out my father was alive. Now he’s a few feet away and I am going to talk to him. Please move aside or I will force my way through.” I said with barely contained annoyance. She looked shocked.
“Well, I guess a few minutes couldn’t hurt...” She said slowly, as if thinking it through. It was all I needed to hear. I pushed past her and down the hall and then stopped because I had no idea where the ER room was! Dragging the nurse and Mark with me, I charged back down the hall towards the man who was my father.

The nurse creaked open the door into a tiny, plain white room. In the center was one of those uncomfortable looking hospital beds. Lying on it was the ghost of a strong man. His arms were ropey with muscle and he had a strong jaw, but his skin was pale and sallow and his chest rose and fell in staggering bursts. At the sound of the door opening, he slowly dragged his eyes open, as if the effort wore him out. He slowly took us in and when his eyes landed on me, they widened and I heard a sharp intake of breath.
“My child…” He whispered faintly. I wanted to pass out.
“Paul? F-father?” I muttered, testing the words out on my tongue. They sounded foreign and off. My eyes began to sting and I had the sudden urge to sit down. The floor looked super inviting at that moment. Mark looked down at me with concern but I paid no attention to him.
“Dad? Is it really you? You’re my dad, right?” I softly asked the man before me.
“Trisha, what are you doing here? What is she doing here?” My father said, turning to Mark.
“I had no choice,” Mark replied, “It was getting too dangerous where she was. Plus her powers have started to develop. She would’ve been a danger to the people around her.”
“Father,” I cut into Mark’s little spiel, “Why? Why’d you leave me with those people? Why? Why?” I kept repeating several times, half delirious. This whole thing was madness.

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Texte: This book cannot be copied without author's consent
Tag der Veröffentlichung: 01.06.2011

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