Chapter 7

“I’m going to go meet Norm at the bus stop,” Dylan said, already out the screen door. The buzzing returned before he even got off the porch, only this time he immediately isolated the sound coming from Nan’s flowers. Like a telescope, his eyes homed in on the target, an angel trumpet amid the blossoms, a bee flitting within its bloom. Amazed he could hear or see the insect from that distance, he crept toward it, the buzz tapering to a low hum. The bee hovered in the center of the flower, Dylan within a few feet. Suddenly, it zoomed straight at him. Instead of trying to sting him or flying away, it danced in front of his face, inching closer to Dylan’s nose. He didn’t feel the need to move away or swat it. They studied each other, a familiar kinship between them. The bee slowed itself until it finally landed on the bridge of his nose and silenced its buzzing wings. It crawled across his face as calmly as if he were one of Nan’s flowers. Dylan enjoyed the tickling sensation of its tiny feet on his skin. After a moment, it lifted off his forehead, humming face to tiny face before flying off.

Bewildered, Dylan shook his head, though at this point not much surprised him. He jogged toward the bus stop a few blocks away from his house. Amazed by how good he felt, Dylan opened up his stride, gliding like a gazelle. He had run track the past two years but never had a surge of energy like this and kicked his pace up into a full sprint, awaiting the fatigue that never came. Dylan arrived at the bus stop in half the time it normally would take. I’m barely winded.

Norm sat in the first seat and practically tore the folding door off its hinge on his way to Dylan. They bumped fists and rushed to put some distance between them and the other students. Norm could hardly contain his nervousness.

“What’s up, Norm?”

“I don’t even want to say it out loud,” Norm said, craning his head around to be sure they were out of earshot. “Something happened to me on the way home from the hospital.” He double-checked no one could hear. “The tree. The one you were talking about; I think it might have been like a really bad thing.”

“Norm, you’re freaking out worse than I was. What happened?”

“When I left the hospital, something attacked me.”

“What?” Dylan’s chest tightened, his eyes searching Norm’s.

“I don’t know. It was like some invisible thing tried to suck the life out of me. I couldn’t breathe! I thought I was gonna die when, but then, whatever it was, it let me go.”

A chill ran up Dylan’s spine. “Did you see anything? Like a big black snake thing?”

“Dude!” Norm stopped, insulted. “I’m sorry I didn’t believe you at the hospital, but don’t mess with me. I’m being totally serious!”

“So am I!” Dylan’s voice cracked. “After you left, this thing, like a shadow with a snake head, attacked me. It took all the air-”

“You’re not kidding, are you? So, what do we do now?”

“We gotta go look for the tree.” Dylan pointed toward the cemetery.

“Seriously?” Norm shook his head in disbelief. “You want to go to a cemetery to figure out why some life-sucking vampire is after us?”

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

“It’s after me, Norm.” Dylan trailed off, walking faster.

“Well, that’s a relief.” Norm cracked a weak smiled. “I had to check my shorts after every fart today.”

“When it attacked me, this crystal thing, like a silver knight, saved me. It said I had to go on some journey, and that I was too valuable.”

“You’re too valuable? You’re a good guy, but what are you talking about?”

“Norm,” Dylan’s eyes darted from side to side, “it said I’m being hunted. Maybe you shouldn’t go with me. It might not be safe.”

Norm stared for a second before speaking. “Wait-a-minute. So, this silver knight saved you? And it actually talked to you?”

“Yup.”

“And it told you the shadow thing was after you?”

Dylan shrunk a little, his eyes wide with fear. “And there would be more of them.”

Norm exhaled, his eyelids narrowing. “Since my mom died, I haven’t been afraid of anything… until last night. It was like pure hate. And it scared me. But even if it’s only after you, I could never let you deal with it alone.”

Norm’s words were reassuring to Dylan. “Thanks Norm, but I don’t even know what I’m supposed to do. Too much crazy stuff happened that I haven’t even told you.”

“Then tell me on the way to the cemetery. I’m in.”

“Thanks.” Dylan let out a nervous laugh. “I really didn’t want to be alone.”

On the walk to the cemetery, Dylan recounted to Norm all the bizarre occurrences, starting with the funeral. The relief Dylan felt confiding in his friend was more than he expected. They arrived and cut between the headstones toward Max’s plot. Wordlessly, they read his name, still in disbelief.

“Guess I better say a goodbye the right way.” Dylan kneeled in front of the stone marking Max’s final resting place and prayed. Norm crouched beside him, saying a silent prayer of his own.

“I’m really gonna miss him.” Norm sniffed.

Dylan wiped his eyes, fighting a full surge of tears. “I was hoping maybe he’d show up. But I guess I knew better. Let’s do this.”

The boys meandered through the familiar wooded corridor. Dylan relived the hollow pain of what was the worst moment of his life, but he couldn’t ignore his newfound connection to the world intensifying. A cardinal circled them, zipping back and forth repeatedly. The boys ignored it.

“I found you right there.” Norm pointed at the opening where Dylan found the tree. It was as they had always remembered. No wall, no tree.

Dylan shrugged, looking around the ground for any remnant of the tree or the wall. “I guess I kinda knew it wouldn’t be here.”

Norm squinted through the glare on his glasses. “You said the tree was black, right? What if it was the black thing that came after you?”

“It wasn’t like that.” Dylan shook his head. “The tree was black, but it’s got this white-hot- electricity or something inside it. It’s like totally filled with… love. I know that sounds corny, but the tree was all good. The shadow thing was like an evil pit that sucks everything into it.”

“Ok, so no tree.” Norm scanned the area for clues. “Then we gotta find the silver knight guy.”

Dylan crouched close to where he fell. “He told me I have to go on a journey, but I have no idea where to go. And we got finals! God hates me!” The cardinal darted in front of him again.

“Tomorrow, dude,” Norm said calmly. “After finals, we can start really looking.”

“Yeah, if we live that long!” Dylan stomped off back the way they came. Norm trotted after him, neither noticing the baseball sized metal orb floating among the trees. Its oval lens flickered and whirred in response to its master’s commands.

“Schmire, send the drone to high altitude and maintain target.” Vorgan ordered the much smaller Terovian. “The new Scion is still unsure of his destiny. Track it and wait for my next command.”

“Uh, Vorgan!” Schmire pointed to the screen. The drone’s camera rocked and rattled, a flurry of red engulfing its lens. “It’s not responding” The picture spiraled out of control and came to an abrupt halt on the ground, the camera angled upward. A red face with a black mask and a golden beak appeared on the screen, twitching. Schmire cringed as the cardinal pecked at the lens before it cracked and blinked off.

“Hmm.” Vorgan stared at the blackness for a few seconds before he backhanded Schmire across the bridge of his pointed nose.

“What was that for?” Schmire shrieked.

“You lost the Scion’s trail.” Vorgan shook his head, dismayed. “And I wanted you to know how my drone felt.”