A girl that looked about the age of fourteen lay spread-eagle on her bed in the silence before dawn.Her face was peaceful and innocent, she looked much younger than when she was awake. When she was conscious, said girl had a haunted look about her face, as if she knew something was awaiting her, but she could never quite put a finger on what it was.
As the gentle tendrils of dawn reached into the room to lightly caress the sleeping figure,the soft, sky-blue eyes of the girl opened, to see the same ordinary yellow lamp by her bedside, and the same withered rose that lay by it. She sat up, and as she did so, the rustling of the blankets shattered the fragile silence that had reigned for the majority of the night. The girl rose to the window and looked out. The war between the old day and the new one was slowly being won.
The girl stood there for some time, waiting for the rest of the household to wake up. Then, she heard the quiet rhythm of footsteps coming down the hall. Before the door had even opened she knew who it was. A small boy with a round face and wide emerald green eyes entered.
"Antebellum, you have a assignment." the boy said in a sweet, high voice.
He passed her a folder. It was thin, but when she opened it held thousands of papers, that would have been impossible to hold in any normal folder. Inside was a picture of a teenage boy who had brown eyes and chestnut hair to match. His smile lit up his whole face,and as Bell looked at him, his perfect nose, his lightly tanned skin and good build, she realized that he was considered handsome- scratch that- drop dead gorgeous by the humans. And he looked like he was completely oblivious to that fact.
"Thank you, Gian."
Bell picked up the rose from where it had lain on the desk. Instantly the shriveled petals regained their pristine white color and the stem erected, as if to greet her.
She walked over to the window and pushed it open, below sailed numerous immaculate clouds. Beyond them, her vision could just pick out the small glint of light reflecting off a plane as it cruised lazily through the sky, a metallic parody of a bird.
Wearily, Bell put her foot on the sill, took a deep breath, and leaped out into the orange sky. For a moment the world below was gone, replaced by a universe of white, the Chasm. If she spoke, she would not be heard, if she raised her hand, it would not be seen, her senses were momentarily disabled. Only two things could cross the Chasm more than once, Him and His messengers. She felt a flash of heat, and then the white was gone, and the clouds were once again rushing at her. She dove through them, getting slightly wet. A slight shiver ran through her body.
She continue to fall, and closed her eyes and allowed herself a moment of peace and exultation at the sensation of having nothing but empty air around you, nothing but the rush of wind in your ea-
The brief moment was over, as she opened her eyes she saw a sea of trees below her, and a city far off in the distance. But it was all growing ever closed, and she could hear the sounds of the earth, not the things that lived on it, but the actual pulse of the earth as she went about her everyday existence. As she neared the ground, her eyes took in the last shadow of night which simultaneously disappeared along with the view of the sky as the ancient pine trees rose up before her like stone columns.
She landed with a soft thud, the pine needles softly crunching underneath her feet. Bell felt like a child standing in a crowd of towering adults as she gazed at the immense trees looming over her. She opened the folder, which had been tightly clenched in her hand the entire trip, and pulled out the picture of the smiling boy.
Far off, she heard the revolting ululation of some otherworldly creature, whose presence aggravated the earth and her children. She glanced at the picture, and with solemn eyes that told a story that unraveled her deceiving appearance, said:
"I will find you before whatever is lurking out there does."
As the gentle tendrils of dawn reached into the room to lightly caress the sleeping figure,the soft, sky-blue eyes of the girl opened, to see the same ordinary yellow lamp by her bedside, and the same withered rose that lay by it. She sat up, and as she did so, the rustling of the blankets shattered the fragile silence that had reigned for the majority of the night. The girl rose to the window and looked out. The war between the old day and the new one was slowly being won.
The girl stood there for some time, waiting for the rest of the household to wake up. Then, she heard the quiet rhythm of footsteps coming down the hall. Before the door had even opened she knew who it was. A small boy with a round face and wide emerald green eyes entered.
"Antebellum, you have a assignment." the boy said in a sweet, high voice.
He passed her a folder. It was thin, but when she opened it held thousands of papers, that would have been impossible to hold in any normal folder. Inside was a picture of a teenage boy who had brown eyes and chestnut hair to match. His smile lit up his whole face,and as Bell looked at him, his perfect nose, his lightly tanned skin and good build, she realized that he was considered handsome- scratch that- drop dead gorgeous by the humans. And he looked like he was completely oblivious to that fact.
"Thank you, Gian."
Bell picked up the rose from where it had lain on the desk. Instantly the shriveled petals regained their pristine white color and the stem erected, as if to greet her.
She walked over to the window and pushed it open, below sailed numerous immaculate clouds. Beyond them, her vision could just pick out the small glint of light reflecting off a plane as it cruised lazily through the sky, a metallic parody of a bird.
Wearily, Bell put her foot on the sill, took a deep breath, and leaped out into the orange sky. For a moment the world below was gone, replaced by a universe of white, the Chasm. If she spoke, she would not be heard, if she raised her hand, it would not be seen, her senses were momentarily disabled. Only two things could cross the Chasm more than once, Him and His messengers. She felt a flash of heat, and then the white was gone, and the clouds were once again rushing at her. She dove through them, getting slightly wet. A slight shiver ran through her body.
She continue to fall, and closed her eyes and allowed herself a moment of peace and exultation at the sensation of having nothing but empty air around you, nothing but the rush of wind in your ea-
The brief moment was over, as she opened her eyes she saw a sea of trees below her, and a city far off in the distance. But it was all growing ever closed, and she could hear the sounds of the earth, not the things that lived on it, but the actual pulse of the earth as she went about her everyday existence. As she neared the ground, her eyes took in the last shadow of night which simultaneously disappeared along with the view of the sky as the ancient pine trees rose up before her like stone columns.
She landed with a soft thud, the pine needles softly crunching underneath her feet. Bell felt like a child standing in a crowd of towering adults as she gazed at the immense trees looming over her. She opened the folder, which had been tightly clenched in her hand the entire trip, and pulled out the picture of the smiling boy.
Far off, she heard the revolting ululation of some otherworldly creature, whose presence aggravated the earth and her children. She glanced at the picture, and with solemn eyes that told a story that unraveled her deceiving appearance, said:
"I will find you before whatever is lurking out there does."
ch 1
Isaac Davis' normally laughing brown eyes were misty as he watched his mother's blank, vacant face, desperately looking for some form of comfort in the sterile atmosphere of the hospital room. Finally a single tear leaked out and tumbled down the boy's long lashes and softly rolled down his cheek.
The crash was repeating in his head, over and over again, the way a nightmare haunts its victim when they pull away from its dark embrace. His last words to his conscious mother echoed painfully in his head. He closed his eyes to try and escape the memories, but instead it amplified the memories.
"Hey mom, can you drive me to Tom's house, he has this awesome new video game, with an awesome two player mode, and he wants to test it out with me."
His mother,who shared his brown hair and eyes, smiled warmly and said,"Sure, hon, I'll drive you."
A couple minutes later he and his mother got in the sand colored Grand Cherokee Jeep and pulled out of the driveway, turning onto the familiar route that lead to his best friend's house. They lived in a petite suburb where people drove cautiously and almost never went above the speed limit. That is why when Isaac's mother rounded a blind turn and saw a speeding black car racing towards them at over fifty miles an hour, in a place where the speed limit was twenty-five, the thought of stamping on the break did not even register in Charlene Davis' head. She swerved to avoid the car, but it was a futile attempt,the car smashed into the Jeep's back end, with a deafening crunch. A piece of debris nicked Isaac's cheek, just a couple millimeters from his eye, wide with terror and panic. When Charlene looked at her son she saw a bloody tear was trickling down his cheek.
The car was now laying in the middle of the road, with the passenger's side facing the oncoming traffic, and as the driver of an enormous loaded semi rounded the turn, Isaac looked at his mother, tan face nearly white. The driver of the semi slammed on the breaks frantically.Charlene slammed on the gas, but the car barely moved, its back was mashed in with the other car, and the combined weight was too much for even the Jeep without its back wheels.
Incredibly fast, Isaac's mother unbuckled her seat belt, then her son's.
"Isaac, switch seats with me."
"Wh-."
"GODDAMMIT ISAAC GET IN THE OTHER SEAT!" she screamed at him, her face streaming with tears.
Isaac had never head his mother raise her voice above speaking level. He obeyed. Just as he snapped in the seat belt, the semi hit home.
Isaac looked into his mother's beautiful face,filled with a mixture of pain and love, and whispered "I love yo-."
And then the world went black.
The tears rolled freely down Isaac's face.
"I-I am s-s-so s-sorreeeeeee!" He pulled his bandaged hands up to cover his face. A month after the accident and amazingly only his burned hands were the only thing still badly injured.
"I-it s-sh-should have been me," he wept.
Suddenly he couldn't take it any more, he stood up, making the chair scrape against the floor. Taking one last look at his mother's pallid face, Isaac turned and ran. Blindly he stumbled down the hall, dodging nurses and doctors who called after him or reached out to him. He ran to the elevator jammed the down button, and then seconds later stepped inside and jammed the one button. The elevator slowly declined from the sixth floor. He reach the bottom with no stops.
He had calmed down a bit during the descent and when the door opened, he walked out into the lobby, instead of sprinting madly like he longed to do. Never before had he wanted so badly to put distance between his mother and himself. Wrapped up in his own thoughts, Isaac slammed into a girl maybe a year younger than him, with sky blue eyes and long, straight blonde hair. The girl fell backwards onto the sidewalk with a small"oomph!"
"Oh, I am so sorry," Issac said. He outstretched his hand to the girl. She gripped it, with a cool, small hand that had a surprisingly strong grip. Isaac noticed the girl had dropped a folder and a white rose, he leaned over and picked them up.. Quick as lightning the girl snatched the folder from his hands.
"Sorry, there are some personal things in there." the girl said, blushing at her rudeness.
"I understand, if you don't mind me asking, what is your name." Isaac was enraptured by the girl's incredible beauty, hearing her voice made his heart skip a beat, and melted away his pain and guilt, momentarily, at least.
The girl smiled, his breath caught.
"Antebellum, but you can call me Bella."
Bella looked at her watch.
"I have to go," she said started to turn away.
Isaac realized he was still holding her rose. It was red now, which was strange, he could have sworn it had been white a moment ago.
"Wait, you forgot your rose."
Bella started to walk away,"Go ahead and keep it, it is a very special plant," she said without even looking back.
The crash was repeating in his head, over and over again, the way a nightmare haunts its victim when they pull away from its dark embrace. His last words to his conscious mother echoed painfully in his head. He closed his eyes to try and escape the memories, but instead it amplified the memories.
"Hey mom, can you drive me to Tom's house, he has this awesome new video game, with an awesome two player mode, and he wants to test it out with me."
His mother,who shared his brown hair and eyes, smiled warmly and said,"Sure, hon, I'll drive you."
A couple minutes later he and his mother got in the sand colored Grand Cherokee Jeep and pulled out of the driveway, turning onto the familiar route that lead to his best friend's house. They lived in a petite suburb where people drove cautiously and almost never went above the speed limit. That is why when Isaac's mother rounded a blind turn and saw a speeding black car racing towards them at over fifty miles an hour, in a place where the speed limit was twenty-five, the thought of stamping on the break did not even register in Charlene Davis' head. She swerved to avoid the car, but it was a futile attempt,the car smashed into the Jeep's back end, with a deafening crunch. A piece of debris nicked Isaac's cheek, just a couple millimeters from his eye, wide with terror and panic. When Charlene looked at her son she saw a bloody tear was trickling down his cheek.
The car was now laying in the middle of the road, with the passenger's side facing the oncoming traffic, and as the driver of an enormous loaded semi rounded the turn, Isaac looked at his mother, tan face nearly white. The driver of the semi slammed on the breaks frantically.Charlene slammed on the gas, but the car barely moved, its back was mashed in with the other car, and the combined weight was too much for even the Jeep without its back wheels.
Incredibly fast, Isaac's mother unbuckled her seat belt, then her son's.
"Isaac, switch seats with me."
"Wh-."
"GODDAMMIT ISAAC GET IN THE OTHER SEAT!" she screamed at him, her face streaming with tears.
Isaac had never head his mother raise her voice above speaking level. He obeyed. Just as he snapped in the seat belt, the semi hit home.
Isaac looked into his mother's beautiful face,filled with a mixture of pain and love, and whispered "I love yo-."
And then the world went black.
The tears rolled freely down Isaac's face.
"I-I am s-s-so s-sorreeeeeee!" He pulled his bandaged hands up to cover his face. A month after the accident and amazingly only his burned hands were the only thing still badly injured.
"I-it s-sh-should have been me," he wept.
Suddenly he couldn't take it any more, he stood up, making the chair scrape against the floor. Taking one last look at his mother's pallid face, Isaac turned and ran. Blindly he stumbled down the hall, dodging nurses and doctors who called after him or reached out to him. He ran to the elevator jammed the down button, and then seconds later stepped inside and jammed the one button. The elevator slowly declined from the sixth floor. He reach the bottom with no stops.
He had calmed down a bit during the descent and when the door opened, he walked out into the lobby, instead of sprinting madly like he longed to do. Never before had he wanted so badly to put distance between his mother and himself. Wrapped up in his own thoughts, Isaac slammed into a girl maybe a year younger than him, with sky blue eyes and long, straight blonde hair. The girl fell backwards onto the sidewalk with a small"oomph!"
"Oh, I am so sorry," Issac said. He outstretched his hand to the girl. She gripped it, with a cool, small hand that had a surprisingly strong grip. Isaac noticed the girl had dropped a folder and a white rose, he leaned over and picked them up.. Quick as lightning the girl snatched the folder from his hands.
"Sorry, there are some personal things in there." the girl said, blushing at her rudeness.
"I understand, if you don't mind me asking, what is your name." Isaac was enraptured by the girl's incredible beauty, hearing her voice made his heart skip a beat, and melted away his pain and guilt, momentarily, at least.
The girl smiled, his breath caught.
"Antebellum, but you can call me Bella."
Bella looked at her watch.
"I have to go," she said started to turn away.
Isaac realized he was still holding her rose. It was red now, which was strange, he could have sworn it had been white a moment ago.
"Wait, you forgot your rose."
Bella started to walk away,"Go ahead and keep it, it is a very special plant," she said without even looking back.
·
Once Antebellum was a safe distance away, she pressed a small button on her watch.
"Report," a voice commanded.
"Assignment found, protection placed, territory secure for the moment. Signs of some unwanted "guests" in the woods near the city. Type: Unidentified," she responded.
"Very well. Be careful and watch your back, mistakes are not tolerated."
A predatory smile, seemingly out of place on the young angel's face, widened as she said,"Understood."
Once Antebellum was a safe distance away, she pressed a small button on her watch.
"Report," a voice commanded.
"Assignment found, protection placed, territory secure for the moment. Signs of some unwanted "guests" in the woods near the city. Type: Unidentified," she responded.
"Very well. Be careful and watch your back, mistakes are not tolerated."
A predatory smile, seemingly out of place on the young angel's face, widened as she said,"Understood."
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