Disclaimer: I do not own Darkest Powers. Blah.
Note: This is a story dedicated to my bfflz, Dirge. Think of it as an early birthday present.
It all started not to far away, in the city of Chicago. A friendship formed between human and ghost. All knowledge about Edison Group and the Genesis Project was released, as were secrets about necromancers, sorcerers, shamans, werewolves, and other magical beings. It was when The Declaration of Independence was changed to "All mean, alive or not, are created equal." It was where Eva Dirge discovered her true necromancy. It was where Nicola McKlatz was murdered by her own mother. It was where life had begun all over again. It was the beginning of a whole new universe.
"Nikki?" Dirge asked one sunny morning as she and her friend watched the sun rise.
"Mm?"
"You never told me, how did you die?"
Nikki paused, lowering her head.
"It's okay, if you don't want to talk about it-"
"No, no," Nikki replied. "No, I'm fine." She took a deep breath. "It was a beautiful morning, like this one. I stepped into the kitchen, while my mother was making breakfast. I hated my mother. Whenever Dad was around, she'd hug me and kiss me and show great affection. But when Dad was at work, well, it's like she was a whole new person."
"What happened?" Dirge raised an eyebrow.
Nikki rested her head on her knees. "She used to beat me, when I did things wrong."
"That's terrible."
Nikki nodded. "That morning, Dad had left for work early. I walked, well, limped into the kitchen, considering the night before she bruised my legs pretty bad. I told her I was sick. I took my temperature that morning and it was over one hundred three. She didn't believe me. I argued and whined and she just got a little too pissed off at me. And then…" Nikki zoned out.
Dirge paused. "…and then?"
Nikki lost herself in a weeping fit.
"Oh! Oh, I'm sorry, Nikki!" Dirge said, scooting over to comfort her friend. "I didn't mean to push. I'm sorry."
Nikki sat upright. "It's okay," she said. "I'm fine."
And with that, the girls watched the sun rise in silence, those last words lingering in the air.
I stepped through the door. "EVA! WAKE UP!"
Eva sprung up in her bed. "Hm?" She looked over at me. "Oh, hi Nikki."
I had been living with Eva since we met. That was the greatest day of my life. She was at the graveyard, practicing her necromancy, when she pulled my ghost out. We had a nice talk about some of our interests, which appeared to be a lot. We like the same anime, the same music, and we hated those dumb ass Damnbercrombie and Bitch (Abercrombie and Fitch, if your wondering) brands.
When Eva was younger, she was kept in Lyle House. She was the youngest one there, but befriended some nice people. Now that Edison Group is out, she's free.
I, too, was a special child. But my dad kept me a secret from the world. We didn't tell anyone. I was- well, am- a telekinetic half-demon. Which is a pretty cool thing to have, because it still applies when you're dead.
Since I don't sleep, I usually go out when Eva does. So in the morning, I'm her personal alarm clock.
I walked through the wall and into the kitchen, where I had set out Eva's breakfast. Since her parents are dead, we live together by ourselves. Most of the laws don't apply to special kids like us, so they presume it's okay for two thirteen-year-olds to live together. My role in our family was sort of like a mom, though it'll become real weird pretty soon, because in less than a month, Eva will officially be one year older than me.
When Eva was done eating, I followed her to school. I like going to school with her, because she's the only necromancer there, so it's fun to mess with people's heads.
I'm the only one of us who gets excited about school. Eva has no other friends besides me there because she's different from everyone else.
The first year we lived together and she went to school, some fuckhead started teasing her for talking to herself, since he can't see when she talks to me. So I…helped out. …Let's just say it involved permanent brain damage, and a bat. She got detention, but all in all, it was pretty fun. Either way, no one messes with her anymore, just ignores her, which makes me feel really bad.
That day, Eva had a math test, which really sucks, because I had to sit through the whole thing.
I leaned over Eva's shoulder and looked at her paper. I blinked. "The answer's 24," I said.
"I can do my own test, ya know?" she shot back at me.
"Eva," Miss Henderson said. "Is that ghost with you again?"
"Ehhh…" Eva stammered.
"Get it out of here!"
The way Miss Henderson called me an "it" really reminded me of my mother. I fumed.
"If my fists didn't go right through that women, I'd make her bleed," I said, balling my fists. Eva just glared at me. I looked back at her. "Alright, I'm going."
I stepped through into the next classroom, which was seventh grade woodshop.
Did I say that Eva was the only necromancer at her school? I meant the only necromancer student. The woodshop teacher, Mr. Brink, was a necro as well. He glanced over at me.
"Oh, hello Nikki," he said.
"Hi, Mr. Brink."
"What brings you here?"
I pointed a finger towards Eva's classroom. "Eva's taking a math test."
Mr. Brink nodded and scratched his beard.
The students didn't bother looking up when Mr. Brink started talking to "thin air", because I pop in all the time when Eva, or her teachers, kick me out. I usually help out with the cleanup and using the dangerous power tools, considering I don't get hurt by them.
Mr. Brink and I usually had conversations about the difference between life and death, special kids and non special kids, sorcerers verses witches, oh, and anime. We talk about that a lot when Eva can't. He was like a father to me, a father who taught children how to handle wood. He was a pretty cool guy.
When the bell rang, and I finished helping him clean up, I told him I was going to wander until lunch. He told me not to cause trouble, and if I do, do it to Miss Henderson.
I thought I'd check out some of the student files to see if anything changed. Eva was in History now, so she should be far away from the school office.
I waltzed through the door, whistling Anthem Of Our Dying Day by Story of the Year, when I saw that the office women with the name I never seem to remember had gone to the teacher's lounge. I sat at her computer and looked through the student files, as I always did on Thursdays.
And I found out some interesting news.
There was an email in the inbox from the high school down the street. They said they got a transferred in senior from Canada. And to think, not only that, but she's a necromancer too. Chloe Saunders, her name was.
Well, of all my luck.
Yeah, it was short, it was just the introduction.
Okay, Eva (or Dirge) is my bestie (her username is Dirge for the Dead if you want to check her out). I got the idea for this story a while ago, but I needed another main character and I wanted it to be her. She hasn't read the Darkest Powers series, so I'm gonna do some explaining at the end of each chapter that she needs to know, so all you people who actually read Darkest Powers, you don't have to read any further.
Dirge: So here is what you'll need to know from this chapter.
-Edison Group is the group that was working on a Genesis Project, to rearrange the DNA of the kids with powers.
-Lyle House was mostly the setting for the first book, where the kids with powers originally went, but I don't think it runs anymore after they all run away.
-Telekinetic Half-Demons can move stuff around when they're ghosts.
-Chloe Saunders is the main character of the book, a teenage necromancer.
Okay that's it. PEACE OUT MA BISCUITS!
~Nikki-senpai
