What's up, people! Just wanted to say OMG DARK PASSAGE IS HERE! WAITED FOR A YEAR AND NOW I SHALL GET THE BOOK! Too bad I ordered it and won't get it til next week, so please people, no spoilers, at least not ones without a warning or something.
So don't know how many of you joined Kingdom Keepers Insider, but I sure did! So excited, but I promised myself I wouldn't read anything from that website until I finished Book 6 :(
Also to that Guest who reviewed The Wish I'll Regret: Youre just not a good writer
I would just like to say thanks for the extra motivation, although this could have been put in a nicer way. I will try to improve my writing as best I can without leaving my style, and if you're still not satisfied, I'm gonna have to say sorry, but that's as far as I'll go. I know that everyone has their own opinions on what writing techniques are better, but I happen to like mine, so I won't be trailing too far from them. Also, as long as we're trading critiques, just wanted to point out: you're*
Anyways, I asked, you responded, and here's the one-shot extension of Pyretic Glitch. Put a little of most of the characters in there…
Amanda's P.O.V
Beneath me, the warm sand was soft to the touch, the rays of the sun dancing across my skin with a delicate waltz. In the wind, my locks of golden hair were blown around, teasing my cheeks and back with a tickle. Not so far off, the sound of ocean waves purling at the base of the beach, over the bed of wet sand, was palliative and serene.
I was giddy with unbelievable intensity, feeling a close proximity to nature at that moment, sensing I was nearer to the beauty of the entire world itself than I ever had been. A smile spread across my face, though I was completely willing.
"This is amazing." I breathed, propped up on elbow, turned to face my boyfriend. He beamed back at me before leaning forward and giving me a quick kiss.
"I know." Grinning, he turned to watch the other keepers for an instant, probably out of instinct to make sure everyone was okay.
Off to the side, Jess, clad in a black bikini speckled with purple polka dots, laughed as she ran over to retrieve the ball. She turned back to Willa, in a solid cherry blossom pink bikini, and resumed their game of racquetball.
Charlene talked with Philby and Maybeck on the beach benches not too far from us, a vision of neon colors in deep comparison to their greens and greys.
"What do you think? Would you call this the perfect vacation or what?" I asked Finn.
"As long as you're with me." He replied, smiling broadly. I rolled my eyes, but giggled anyways.
"Finn Whitman, you are one of the cheesiest boys I've ever met."
He smirked, "Oh, right. You love me." Before I had a chance to retort with a sarcastic remark, he pulled me over and began to tickle me.
"Finn," I laughed, despite myself, trying to pull away. "Finn!" I pleaded, but couldn't help but giggle as I squirmed.
"Hey, stop harassing my sister!" Jess shouted, snickering as she ran over to save me. Not long after, she had managed to separate me and Finn. "Jeez, lovebirds. Ever heard of too much PDA."
"You're just jealous." I poked fun at her. She snorted, rolling her eyes.
"As if." Was her response, before she settled down, squeezing herself between the two of us. Willa came over to join us, seeing as she was short an opponent in her game.
I heard a shriek to the left, "Don't you dare!" Turning to see Maybeck and Philby carrying Charlie by her arms and legs. "Terrence Maybeck and Dell Philby! Put me down!"
The four of us watched as they stopped just where the water began. "One…Two…" They swung her back and forth, pretending they were about to let go, teasing as she screeched. "Three." With a grand release, they launched her into the water, resulting in an exaggerated splash.
When we saw her come up, red-faced and soaked, the six of us were just about rolling on the floor laughing. Finn whistled and flagged them over. As the three neared us, Charlene turned to them and said, "I'll get you for that."
While Philby just smirked at her comment, Maybeck sneered, patting her head as if to say 'sure you will'. "Well, I'm starved." He said, "Let's go to lunch."
Finn's P.O.V
We all sat at one of the tables near the bar at the pool. Kids' laughter and the sound of a loud splash filled the air when someone shot down through the water slide. After we ordered, the seven of us ate our dishes, washing it down with bottles of soda, laughing at one thing or another. Even after we were done and had thrown away our garbage, we sat and just talked.
"So at this point, my mom was wondering where I'd gone," Philby continued with his story, "When there's a splash behind her and she looked over the side of the boat just in time to watch me disappear under the water. She freaked out! So, she dived in, dress and all, after me. She'll never let me live it down, but I was only like a year old."
"That's scary. I've got one too," Charlene said. "I was at the beach with some family friends. The two daughters and I had dug out of ditch big enough for us to stand in," Charlie continued with her story, "Like we were five years old and we were pretty small so it wasn't that hard. But then, when Katie climbed out to go get water, all of a sudden the support failed and the walls caved in on us. So Hannah and I stood there, buried to the neck in sand."
"Oh my gosh," Amanda laughed, imagining it. "What'd you do?"
"We were little, we didn't know what to do. So we start shouting and hollering, until our parents rushed over and saw what happened. It took half an hour, five adults, six shovels and twelve buckets of water to get us out of there."
We were all cracking up at the horrified look on her face when I interjected. "Please, Char. I beat that by a long shot. Try two hours and forty five minutes."
"How'd that happen?" Phil laughed.
"My parents were on a walk down the beach with some family friends and I was alone with my sister." The still looked at me expectantly, wanting more explanation. "My sister is evil."
"You think your sister's evil? When I was like seven years old, we went to the beach. The day before I'd watched Jaws. My Aunt Jelly was on the sand watching me when her eyes got real big with fright and she stood up and screamed, 'Shark in the water!' I was out of the water faster than she could say 'false alarm'. She's always loved messing with me."
We all laughed at this because there was no doubting Maybeck's aunt and her awesomeness. She was a bit of a prankster too.
"Your aunt? Try my brothers! A few of years ago, I went to the beach with them and I fell asleep on my towel. I woke up on a pool float like a hundred yards from shore!" Willa exclaimed, caused us to burst out laughing. "It's not funny. They knew how afraid I was!"
Jess interrupted through laughter. "Any of you guys been to the beaches up north before?"
A chorus of no's sounded and we shook our heads. "Wow, you've missed out." Amanda raised an eye brow at us. "It's remarkable."
"The waves are huge and even during the summer the water's cold enough to make your teeth chatter. But it's outstanding. You're supposed to either jump over or dive under the waves but sometimes if you just stand there, it knocks you over, lost in the water." Jess grinned, remembering it vividly. "You don't know which way is up and as soon as you break the surface, another wave comes and knocks you down again. You feel like that might have been the last breath you'll ever take as you scrape the floor, tossing and tumbling under the waves. But it's the best rush in the world. You gotta try it."
"As much fun as that suicide mission sounds," I started, sarcastically, "I think I'll stick with Florida waters."
"Oh, come on. It's so much fun!" Amanda encouraged. "We should go up there during the summer."
"Fine," I sighed. "I'll think about it."
"Yay!" She smiled, kissing me. Which I didn't mind, at all.
"For the love of…I think I'm gonna puke." Jess shook her head at us, putting it in her hands. The girls laughed.
…
"Come on, guys." Amanda stood. The girls had been in our room for the last several hours, all of us playing games and messing around. "I think it's time we should go."
I took a look at the clock and realized it was already midnight. The other girls stood too, saying their goodnights and leaving the room. Once they had left, we had decided it was time we go to sleep. After changing, we got into our rotating sleeping arrangement, tonight with me and Maybeck on the beds and Philby on the pull out couch.
In the middle of my dreams, the beeping of my watch woke me up. Groggily, I peeked at the time and smiled. I was one in the morning. As quietly as I could, I got dressed and grabbed my room key. As I left the room, I closed the door silently and waited.
A few minutes passed before I heard the door knob of the room across from ours begin to turn and Amanda emerged, clothed and smiling. "Hey," she breathed, in a hush.
"Let's go." I said, putting an arm around her and leading her down the hallway.
"We're pretty much breaking Wayne's only rule." She giggled when we were in the elevator.
"How does it feel, queen of the rebels?" I asked her, jokingly.
With a laugh, her eyes gleamed at me, "Pretty good." I watched a smile form on her face when we entered into the lobby and exited the hotel.
In the moonlight, her skin was almost radiant. She was a goddess. That perfect smile. Her hair flowed like graceful waves along her back. The freckles on her cheeks were so endearing while she grinned. The added spring in her step was like she was an angel trying not to fly away, to keep herself grounded. While she talked, all I could do was stare at her beauty.
We walked along the beach, the crashing of the waves roaring over our voices. The stars were out, but they were nothing compared to the sight to behold right beside me.
I stopped, causing her to follow suit. "What is it?" She asked, curious and concerned.
Without a word, I leaned forward and caught her lips in a kiss.
Charlene's P.O.V
The sound of a phone ringing woke me in the middle of the night. Squinting my eyes to adjust to the light, I glanced at the clock. It read 1:30 a.m. I groaned, leaning back on the bed, pulling my pillow over my face. The phone continued to blare the song Drunk by Ed Sheeran.
"Someone pick up that phone!" I grumbled, turning over and covering my ears to block it out.
Suddenly, the music stopped. "Sorry, Char." Willa mumbled from beside me, leaning over and pressing decline "I'll put it on vibrate."
I had only begun to settle back when her phone vibrated. With a moan, she grabbed her phone off the bureau and got out of the bed. "Hello?"
She gave me an apologetic look, before leaving to the bathroom to not bug me. Sitting up, I took a look around. Soft snoring came from the other side of the room and I giggled as Jess rolled over. It was a wonder to me how she could sleep through that.
Taking a closer look, I realized Amanda wasn't it her bed. A terrified shock jolted me into complete awareness. Okay, calm down. She probably just couldn't sleep and went for a walk. Yeah, that's it.
Trying to convince myself it was true, I fell back onto the bed and began to drift off the sleep again.
…
There were screams and blood and loud banging. All I saw was black, but I was petrified of what I might see if otherwise so I wasn't complaining. Suddenly, I shot up from my nightmare, breathing heavily. Nearly in sweats, I turned to the clock to see what time it was. It was 2:15 in the morning.
Sighing, I rubbed my eyes, wishing I was a heavy sleeper like Jess, who hadn't woken up even from my shouting. Lying back down, I found I had a lot of space for myself. As I began to move about more, I realized I had the entire bed.
I sat up and noticed that Willa wasn't there, and neither was Amanda. Great. My heart sped up. Had the Overtakers been able to follow us to the Bahamas? Slowly, I climbed out of the bed and crept across the floor. A peek through the peephole informed me there was no one there. But my nerves forced me to open the door anyways.
There wasn't anyone there. But I was determined to find my missing friends. Closing the door noiselessly, I shuffled down the hall and headed for the elevator.
When the door opened again, I stepped out into the lobby, which was dead silent. "No, I get it." The sudden voice made me jump with fright; I was sure I'd had a heart attack. I followed the voice and saw Willa pacing back and forth around the couches by the pillar.
"It's just that…But, you can't just expect me to…I'm your daughter!" Her voice was shaky as she talked into the phone, tears running down her face. I began to walk towards her, her back to me, and watched as her body shuddered with a sob.
"No, I've done my listening." She hiccupped. "It's my turn to talk. You left me. To die. If Mark hadn't done what he did, I…" I stopped when she paused, wiping her tears. "Then why'd you have to call today? At one in the morning! Huh? Why?"
A short break as the person on the other line spoke. "Well, it's a little late for that!" Harshly, she pushed the end call button and sat on the couch, reducing to tears. I ran forward.
"Oh, honey." I muttered, throwing an arm around her, my heart breaking. Her jerked at first, caught off guard, then let me comfort her. "It's okay."
She shook her head, hastily. "No, it's not."
"Wills, I know it's hard for you, but you have to forgive her." I swallowed, the bitterness of saying that cruel to my tongue.
"Why? She would have let me die, Charlie! Just sit there and rot."
"I know it's tough, but she loves you. It's hard for her too." I whispered, holding my little sister closer.
"How do you know that?"
"Because my mom doesn't get to see my dad a lot. She hurts sometimes. And your mom doesn't know how to deal with the pain. I know it seems like she hates you and she doesn't care. But that's not true, Willa, it's not true." I rocked her in my lap, letting her cry. This was a difficult subject for her. I had always been careful because I knew it was sensitive, but she needed the relief right now.
"Char, I…No, that's not true. I lost him, too. But I don't go around beating anyone up for it."
"I know, you're too sweet for that. But she's not evil, she just need help. And I know she loves you." Slowly, the girl in my arms found it harder to keep her eyes open. She dried off the last of her tears, standing.
"I don't know if you're right or not. But I'm willing to give her a chance." She whispered.
I smiled, hugging her. "Okay. I'll be there if you want me, for support." Linking my arm through hers, we headed towards the elevator, "Let's go back to sleep."
Just as the elevator dinged, we heard laughter behind us. We turned to see Amanda and Finn walked in through the lobby doors. "Where the hell have you been?" I nearly shouted.
They turned pale, then red with embarrassment. "Um…we…uh." Finn tried.
"Ugh, whatever. You'll explain yourselves in the morning. Let's just all go back to bed."
Philby's P.O.V
"Dude, I will annihilate you!" Maybeck boasted, grinning from ear to ear the screen.
I rolled my eyes. He had woken up just barely past one and noted that Finn was gone. Instead of worrying what happened to him, like I had for a little while, he shook me awake and stated it was the perfect time to play videogames. He needs to sort out his priorities.
"Headshot!" He called, a bit loud for this time of the morning.
"That's not fair, I was distracted."
"Rules are rules." He laughed, waving his controller in my face as though it was a trophy worth gloating about.
"Aren't you a little suspicious as to where Finn might have gone?" I asked him, wondering if his mind had even roamed to the subject.
"Aw, come on. We're in the Bahamas. Midnight stroll on the beach with your girlfriend, not original, but she'll totally worship the ground you walk on after that."
"And you know this because…" I pressed, though he didn't seem altered by my questioning his all-knowingness.
"I know my way with the ladies." He smirked.
"Right, the player." I sneered. "I feel bad for Charlie sometimes."
"Why?"
"She has you for a boyfriend." I indicated.
"Hey!" He stood up, looking angry to some extent, but that washed away when we heard the scream.
Jess's P.O.V
The world was a void of clouds and thin air. A sudden gust of freezing air brushed past me, making me stand erect with fear, every part of me alert. Brilliant springtime green, beneath me the ground is a surplus of grass, almost enough to soften the harsh image of the rocky cliff not far ahead.
Now the sun is shining through, little rays of light poking holes in the blanket of grey. There's a cry, one I recognize. But I can't tell who it was. Or if it was deep or high. A girl or a boy.
Cautiously, I wander past the welcoming feel of the grass under me, sharp pains at my soles as the jagged stone pierces skin. I peek over the side, to watch the blue disappear, the waves redden.
With a horrific shriek, I woke up. Trembling from head to toe, I pulled the blanket up to my neck, protecting myself from a threat I have yet to see. The vision, it must have been, has halted, completely vanished from my mind. But I know it'll come back in the future, although hopefully not too late.
"What's wrong?" Philby demanded as he nearly slammed the door open. He was followed by Maybeck, who turned on the lights, sending away the monsters that were hiding in the darkness, in every shadow.
I squinted, adjusting to the sudden change. But my eyes burned, and I felt a headache coming on. Bringing up a hand, I shielded my face from the brightness as best I could.
Both boys looked around before Maybeck turned to me and asked, "Where are the other girls?" informing me of something I had, until then, not been aware of. All three were missing.
"I-I don't know. I just woke up." My choice of words was careful, because I didn't want to worry them. Even though, I knew they were going to freak out anyways.
As Maybeck walked out of the room, checking the hallways for the girls, Philby walked over to my bed and sat down on the corner, "Why'd you scream?"
I averted eye contact, hoping he wouldn't see the truth in my eyes. "I had a bad dream. Nothing worth worrying about."
"Was it…a Jess dream?" He questioned, and though I couldn't see his face, his voice was anxious.
"No, it was nothing." I replied too quickly; he raised an eye brow at me. But before he has any time to persist, in came Maybeck, the four others right on his tail.
"Found them." He announced, pointing out the obvious.
"I would ask you a million questions. Like where you were?" I said, glaring at Amanda and Finn, who both blush and let go of the other's hand. "Or why you look like you've been crying?" I looked at Willa, whose face was a slight pink, and Charlie, who wouldn't let go of her. "Or why you all left me here alone? But it's three o'clock in the morning and I think it can wait til morning."
"Okay," Finn jumped in, "Everyone go to bed."
…
It was just a little bit past noon and all the keepers had been climbing around the forest, in a tourist route that Amanda had claimed to be gorgeous. In fact, it was beautiful. Tall tropical trees forming a tunnel around you, with only some sun peeking out between the branches. Big, colorful flowers and animals all about us.
"The mosquitos are eating me alive." Charlene complained, swatting them away and slapping one that had landed on her arm, only to draw her hand away with a small glob of blood. "Eww."
Apparently, she thought it was a good idea to wipe it off on my arm. "Charlie!" I grumbled, trying to rub it off. "Gross."
The others laughed at our little episode. She gave me a half smile, her way of saying 'sorry but better you than me.' Which wasn't really an apology. I rolled my eyes, smirking slightly, my way of saying, 'whatever, I'll get you later.' Which wasn't really a pardon.
"Stop whining, you guys." Amanda snickered, staring down at the map again. "Jeez, I swear, one day you'll just get sick of each other and we'll have two less keepers to worry about."
We all knew she was just joking. Because it happened a lot. We spent a lot of time together, sometimes more than we want. And that leads to getting tired of the others and fighting. But it always works out in the end.
"How much farther, Amanda?" Finn asked, leaning over her to take a look at the map.
"Not much farther. Maybe a five minute climb."
"Good," Philby faked a huff of struggle, "Willa's getting heavy." He joked.
"Excuse me?" She quipped, teasingly. He had been piggy-backing her through the forest for a good portion of the hike. Actually, he had offered. Although he didn't say it out loud, I still thought we were weak from the sickness.
But I was feeling a lot better, good as new. And everything was amazing. Until I began to feel a pang of déjà vu. I recognized our surroundings, but I couldn't quite put my finger on how. We came upon a clearing, a cliff. The crashing of waves beneath was loud and roaring. The sun was bright in my face. A luscious bed of grass carpeted the floor. I knew this place. But I couldn't remember where from.
'That's a long way down." Charlene glanced over, turning white. A few steps back, afraid to fall. She warned, "Nobody trip."
I closed my eyes, retracing all the thoughts in my head. This place was bad. I could tell because it gave me an awful feeling in my gut, my stomach twisting. But I couldn't remember where it was from.
"Donnie!" Charlene broke me out of my trance. He had picked her up bridal style and was nearing the edge of the cliff, little by little, laughing as the suspense killed her. She thrashed, "Donnie, don't you dare."
"Aw, come on. This place is known for this. You're supposed to jump off into the water. It's fun!"
By then he was right at the end of the cliff. She was motionless, staring into his eyes, utterly terrified, pleading for him not to. He let go.
The scream that followed. That was all it took. I knew where I was and why it was bad. But I was too late. I screeched, jumping forward and peering over the edge. My insides were mush. I felt like I was about to throw up.
The water was red.
Several seconds passed, she didn't surface. Tension grew worse and worse. The next lapse was one I couldn't describe. I was too exhilarated with fright to remember it.
But next thing I know, we were at ground level, on a beach next to the cliff and Maybeck was dragging Charlene's limp body out of the water. My heart stopped.
We all crowed around her, staring at her, unable to say a word. Her eyes shot open and everyone yelped, jumping back.
"Fooled you!" Her face turning bright red with laughter. "I told you I'd get you back."
"What-how the ….?" That was all the stupefied Maybeck could stutter out.
"I knew if I made it seem like I was scared, you would be able to resist teasing me." She smirked, leaning forward to kiss him. "I know you well."
We all stared at her, long and hard, flabbergasted that she'd pull such a prank. "How'd you fake the blood?" I asked, considering I was still stuck on that.
She cocked an eyebrow at me, and said, "The internet is a wonderful place. It tells you all kinds of ways to make homemade movie stunts."
I was just about ready to murder her. But she was right. She had gotten them good; too bad she had to scare the hell out of all of us in the process.