Chapter 1

"Traffic and safety rules? More like traffic and safety SUGGESTION!"

-My sister, probably.

I can mentally hear the simultaneous cries of driving instructors across the entire planet as countless road laws are violated in what's supposed to be my escape from a biology exam that I may or may have not studied for.

Or maybe that's just tinnitus from a possible concussion kicking in.

"Prim, it might just be easier for me to tour your workplace if I'm, oh, I don't know, conscious for it?! So please save both me and the car by -OOF- by not hitting this upcoming speed bump at 80 Miles Per Hour." I borderline beg my sister as I notice her finger barely hovering over the Nitrous button.

I can't see it, but my heart tells me that Prim is rolling her eyes. She releases an "ugh" with the force and attitude of a thousand bothered sisters. She then proceeds to speak in a different pitch.

"Prim, you gotta bail me out! The professor is gullible enough to believe my sob story and give me a few extra days, but my ride is still in dad's shop!" She mocks. "Aren't you just the shining image of chivalry?"

"Hey, I swear I'm not that bad!" I retaliate. "I just so happened to choose my GPA over ethics that day, and you know that university values-"

"Oh, Prim!" She starts once again. "I can't use any driving app, the drivers around here and I am currently on a 'never talking to each other again' basis."

This woman.

"You can't mock and lecture me on ethics and 'chivalry' when you are literally treating the public road like your play-"

"Can it." Prim cuts me off. "I saved you, so you don't get to complain as long as you're in this car."

Ughhhhh.

"Besides, you know how passionate I am about this. As if I'm going to give up this once in a chance lifetime opportunity! Tardiness is not an option!"

The stillness of the green hilly neighborhoods and backroads is interrupted by the abrupt dissonance of a V6 engine screaming at the top of its lungs.

"Just keep your center of gravity in the middle of the seat and hang on to the grab handle! It's only a problem if the speed bump starts screaming!" She snickers to herself with a half-smirk on her face.

"That's not-"

BUMP BUMP

As my body leaves the seat, I get enough airtime to regret my decision to step inside this car and dream about the alternative scenario where I had just studied like a good student. I am harshly yanked back to reality by one of the greatest inventions of mankind, the seatbelt, also known as the only thing that keeps my head from flying through the car's roof.

I would like to clarify that Prim can indeed obey safety laws like a good citizen. It's just that today, she decided that those laws are now... optional for some reason.

"Whatever you're so excited about, I'm pretty sure it's not worth our LIVES and the sweat, tears, and LITERAL BLOOD, mind you, that we put into modding this car!" I borderline yell, earning a side glare from Prim.

"Oh, pipe down, you pansy- !!!" A gasp escapes from Prim's lips as she slams the brakes without warning, causing my face to nearly kiss the glove compartment.

Our karma has gotta be kicking in for sure! Thanks to my sister's negligence, an unsuspecting deer is about to ascend to the little barn in the sky...

Is what is in my head, however, catching a quick glance ahead reveals something else. Something much more... abstract.

Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

What lies ahead... can only be described as a "shimmer" of some kind. Translucent waves of floating rainbows in front of us. It's almost as if someone had spilled oil into water, but the oil and water started to float. But doing nothing more than that. Peacefully drifting through the air with its untold secrets...

Except my sister and I are about to slam into it at about 62 miles per hour.

My mind goes blank, my heart drops, and I lose feeling in all my limbs. I shut my eyes, preparing to meet my maker. I feel Prim put an iron grip on my chest. My body flings towards Prim as the car rotates in an effort to avoid an uncertain fate. The screeching of the car only gets louder. I brace....

Spinning... Screeching... Sliding... Nothing?

I cautiously open my eyes and scan my surroundings. The only sounds I hear are Prim and I's shallow, fast breaths as we try to calm ourselves from that near-death experience. The quiet rumbling of the car slowly takes me back to reality.

Neither of us says anything. However, I notice Prim staring at the shimmer, absolutely appalled. I move my eyes between her and the shimmer, trying to discern what's going through her head.

Prim finally decides to break the silence.

"...Since when are they on the ground?"

Some of them have been periodically getting closer and closer to the surface at a linear rate now that I recall. Over the past few months, these "shimmers" started to appear all over the world at an almost ludicrous number of locations. Rather than coming from space or underwater, they just started... appearing.

Countless studies and tests have taken place but...

I sigh, but not from relief. My hand meets my head as my head throbs over this. These... things! Not knowing where they come from, why they're here, and what they even do, It's just....

I rub my temples. It's not like they're hurting anyone, or doing anything, as far as we can tell. But you know what can hurt someone?

I turn to Prim.

"By the way, you've lost your driving privileges."

Later...

The satisfying sound of gravel crunching together slowly calms my nerves as Prim and I venture down the chalk-colored path. Following her might be sort of a pain right now, but it sure beats taking that exam. But for the sake of my sanity...

"Look, I get that you're hyped for... whatever this is, but if you ever do that again, I'll film it, post it, and tag everyone in your contact list. I'll personally DM Mom and dad too."

"Pfft- Jokes on you," Prim says as she lets loose a chuckle. "Dad is currently making a puddle of drool in his sleep, and mom is currently deciding the fate of half of NATO's forces with her next sell."

I feel an ever-so-slight sense of despair rush through my body when I hear that last statement because...

There's a good chance she's not exaggerating.

"What... did she do this time?" I respond with a slight shudder in my voice.

Prim simply stops in her tracks and begins inspecting a nearby tree with a smirk. I patiently await an answer to my question, but it looks like it's not coming anytime soon. I glance at the tree that is apparently important enough to ignore one's brother over.

...

...

...yep. It's a tree.

"Never knew you were into botany, sis."

"I'm not." She replies, staring at the same spot. "We're just exactly where we need to be."

I analyze my surroundings to try to make sense of what she just said. The gravel road seems to end right in front of Prim and me, as it is blocked off by a grassy miniature hill. Well, more like an oversized hump is a better way to describe it. It was the one odd thing around, but Prim insists on staring at this tree for some reason. She even starts to wave at it.

I check my surroundings again to make sure I'm not missing anything.

Let's see... Woods... Woods... and OH MY GOSH! IT'S- woods.

"Prim, I speak for the trees, and the trees say you're off your meds," I say, trying to bring her back to reality. "Let's go back to civilization before natural selection decides to apply-"

A sharp, piercing clang cuts me off. In an instant, my instincts force me to turn to the source of the noise, the hill from earlier. I hold my breath as the hill begins to emit a series of mechanical noises. A tall rectangle begins to outline itself on the front of the hill.

With barely any thought, I sprint toward Prim to take her hand and tug her towards me and away from the hill. A sharp gasp escapes her lips.

"Ah! Hey- Monarch, let me go!" Prim exclaims as she attempts to stand her ground.

"I don't like this, Prim," I say in return. "I don't know about you, but I don't trust hills that make those kinds of noises-"

"Oh, will you stop!?" Prim exclaims. "This is supposed to happen, you closet coward! Look!"

Uncalled for.

I gaze towards the rectangular shape that has now fully formed. My heart pounds as I begin to take a couple of steps back while still holding Prim.

The rectangle begins to ascend, revealing a hallway made of metal inside, illuminated by the white glow of LED lights. Just as I think my reality can't be any more shattered than it already is, two shadowy figures stride through the hallway, eventually revealing themselves to be two men in black suits and sunglasses.

"Ugh, it took you guys long enough!" Prim says to the two men slightly frustrated. "What if this had been an emergency?"

Prim begins to approach the individuals while suddenly gripping onto me tightly, tugging me along with her and overpowering me with ease. She turned the grip I had on her around in seconds- no, milliseconds!

Knowing I can't physically win, I turn to a logos approach.

"Prim, why are we conversing and walking towards the literal hillbilies?" I ask with desperation in my voice.

"Because, like I said," Prim turns to me. "This is where we are supposed to be. We're at a black site!"