AFNI'S POV.
Chapter I
As I leaned into the tree, the wind began to blow. Even though it seemed to do that at this time every night, something was different. There was something in the air that told me that things would change. I stood up, and looked around. Light poked through the brush down the path. A little confused, I started down. Everyone I'd met along the way had been sleeping in houses, or huts, but never outside. I stepped on a branch, and froze for a second. No one said anything. I didn't realize I'd been holding my breath, so I exhaled, inhaled, exhaled.I kept breathing, quietly, and walked closer. Reaching down, I took a grip on the hilt of my sword, ready for anything. My jeans scraped together, but I couldn't do anything: what I wore was all I had. I took a tighter grip on my sword, and slowly began to pull it from the sheath. Just incase. As I neared the clearing, I saw people moving around. At first I saw only one, but pretty soon two, and then four. Four people sitting in the clearing, with a fire, keeping warm, most likely. I pulled the brush back a little, and leapt into the clearing, brandishing my sword. They all spun around, surprised that anyone had found them. They were teenagers, roughly my age. Three of them were men, the other female, but one of the men was black.
"Four teens, one female, one black. This isn't something I've come across a lot out here in the woods." One drew a sword. The handle had jewels, and it looked so very familiar, but I couldn't place it. He leapt at me, and the blades clanked together. We fought for a few seconds, his blade catching my arm, before I knocked the sword into a tree, and pinned him on the ground.
"I do not wish you harm, unless you wish me harm," I stated, pulled back, and reached out to get his sword.
"No! Wait, don't touch it!" he exclaimed, leaping up. I looked over at him, and put my sword back into its sheath. "If you touch it, you'll be burned."
"Why?"
"Because I didn't give you permission to hold it. If I don't give you permission, then it will burn you." I looked at it.
"Where did you get this?"
"Sir Galahad, right after he died." I stepped back.
"So this is where the sword went?" He nodded. I looked at his face. He seemed familiar, too, but I didn't know why.
"Wait.step into the light." He moved a little closer to the fire, and I looked at him. Then it hit me. My hand covered my mouth as I realized it. His brown hair, his sometimes dark eyes. I knew that face, and now I knew why! "David?" He jerked.
"How did you.?"
"David Levin. You were in third hour Chemistry, right?" He looked at the others with him.
"Yea. How did you know that?" he asked.
"It's me! I was." I looked around for a second. "I was your partner when you accidentally blew up half the Science lab. Remember?" He stopped, to think. Then it hit him.
"Afni?" he asked. I nodded.
"Yea, David. It's me. Afni Waters."
"But, everyone said you died.in a car crash on your way to visit your dad." I shook my head.
"No. My mom must've made that up because I was going to see my dad, but one minute I'm driving down the highway, and the next I'm here.My car must have hit a tree or something."
"Actually, it drove into the side of the bank." I giggled.
"Was anyone hurt?" He shrugged.
"I don't think so. But everyone thinks something terrible happened to you, because no one can find you. So, how long have you been here?"
"Well, how long ago did you blow up the Chemistry room?" He thought for a minute.
"About ten months ago. Why?"
"Then I've been here nine and a half months." They stared at me.
"How did you survive?"
"I met this colony of people.but I don't remember what they were called. They let me come in a live in their city."
"Which way?" I jerked my thumb behind me, and then looked back at him.
"Why do you ask?"
"Well, what was that place like?" I stopped and thought.
"It was a city of all men, and eight-legged horses."
"No way!" he cried. I stepped back.
"What?"
"That city is ruled by Hel."
"Goddess of the Dead."
"Yea. How'd you know?" I smiled.
"Well, David, according to legend, she's supposed to come back with the Norse God Loki, who happens to be her father, and lead the forces of evil against the gods in the 'titanic struggle of Ragnarok.'"
"Ragna-what?" a voice asked. She turned to see a boy, laying in the dirt, beside the fire, wrapped in a sheet-like thing.
"Ragnarok. It's the end of the world."
"But, wait. How'd you stay in that city? Hel never allows women to stay in that city, ever," another person asked. There sat a girl beside the boy in the dirt. She held a cloth, appearing to be wet, in her hand. There was a little puddle beneath it. Apparently, it'd been dripping.
"Well." I unhooked my sword, and laid the belt on the ground, then sat beside it.
"When I went there, I had scars and scratches and.a lot of shit on my face, so I wasn't really much competition for her before her face began falling off."
"What happened?" David asked. I turned my head to see him, for he was still standing behind me.
"I fell. Partway down the path from the mountain, I stumbled over a snake, and fell. Rolled for quite sometime. Hit the bottom, and woke up in her city. They said I could stay, because, in my current condition, I was no threat. Great boost of my self-esteem, I'd say," I muttered. He stifled laughter. I dropped my eyes into the fire before I spoke again.
"So, who else do you have here, David?" He looked over.
"Well, the one laying on the ground is Christopher Hitchcock."
"Oh, yea. You sat in the row next to mine in English class." He shrugged.
"Then there's April O'Brien."
"Theater, right?"
"Right," she said, smiling.
"Then, Jalil Sherman."
"Hmmm.Psychology?" I asked. He looked over from his place opposite the fire from me.
"Yeah. That's right. You know, the class was beginning to miss you." I smiled.
"I miss the class, too.Christopher? You okay?"
"Oh, he ran into a tree, hurt himself pretty badly." I slid over, sitting beside him.
"Well, that explains this bump, but what about all these cuts and bruises?"
"Fell." Afni smiled.
"Well, Christopher. Do you hurt?" He looked at me, as though I was insane.
"I don't know, Afni. We've been chased by dragons, witnessed an immortal get eaten alive by a god-eating god, fought weird-ass aliens, escaped from Hel, Loki, Merlin, and a long list of other creepy shit in this dimension, and yet, you ask if I hurt?!" I raised a hand in defense.
"Christopher, if you wish me to make you feel better, do not yell at me." An English-type accent floated into my voice.
"How can you make the pain go away, unless you have some magic drug?"
"Exactly. Magic."
"Huh?" They all looked at me. I smiled.
"Listen. I have been here for a very long time. After a while, you manage to make friends with mostly all the creatures around you. The Hetwan and Coo-Hatch do not try to kill me. Loki and Merlin let me walk by them without a word. Dragons purr whenever I cross their path. Hel admires my courage for wandering in the open with a 'disfigurement that makes her the most beautiful creature around.' Ganymede's loss was mourned by all, but nothing can bring him back. Ka Anor gives me passage through his city any time I wish. With all this kindness brought out of gods and creatures more ruthless that even Keith and Senna combined and multiplied, I have been able to tap into the core of all their magical energy, and bring it to my own. The only problem I have here is Dionysus."
"How come you have a problem with the party god?" Christopher asked. I shook my head.
"He's the god of wine and vegetation, Christopher... Besides, when I try to be serious, he wants half naked women to curl up against him because it makes him comfortable. Last time he did that, I made lightning strike his drinking glass. We don't speak anymore. Now, it is as I asked. Would you like me to make your pain go away?" Christopher smiled.
"Of course." I sat Indian style beside him, and placed my hands on his chest. He looked up at me, unsure.
"Close your eyes, Christopher, please. And relax your mind." He closed his eyes. I thought hard for a few seconds. I could faintly see the light trying to pry into my closed eyes. Into my mind. I kept it out. And then, in a quick flash, it was gone. My hands were in my lap, and my eyes were open. Christopher sat up, and patted himself down.
"Whoa." I smiled.
"How do you feel?" I asked. He smiled.
"Great! Uh.but can you do something about this toga? It was all I could find before we came here." I laughed. He raised an eyebrow.
"Hang on." I turned around, and clapped by hands, then started ruffling through something that they could not see from where they were. After a minute, I clapped my hands, and turned around. I tossed him a pair of blue jeans, and a shirt.
"Whoa, cool!" he said. He hopped up, and dropped the toga. We all looked away.
"Has he lost all sense of modesty?" I asked. David nodded. "Alright. I was just checking. You guys don't seem to like it here all that much." They looked at me, and Christopher sat down.
"Of course we don't really like it here. One of the best parts here was Ganymede and the good gods."
"Ah. So you wish to go home, fully and completely?" They nodded.
"Why? I mean, it's not as if we can just walk through a door and arrive in our bodies."
"Actually, it's almost that simple." They stared at me. All of them confused, all of them wondering, their eyes trying to pry into my mind to see what I was talking about.
"You see, I know how to get you all home."
Chapter I
As I leaned into the tree, the wind began to blow. Even though it seemed to do that at this time every night, something was different. There was something in the air that told me that things would change. I stood up, and looked around. Light poked through the brush down the path. A little confused, I started down. Everyone I'd met along the way had been sleeping in houses, or huts, but never outside. I stepped on a branch, and froze for a second. No one said anything. I didn't realize I'd been holding my breath, so I exhaled, inhaled, exhaled.I kept breathing, quietly, and walked closer. Reaching down, I took a grip on the hilt of my sword, ready for anything. My jeans scraped together, but I couldn't do anything: what I wore was all I had. I took a tighter grip on my sword, and slowly began to pull it from the sheath. Just incase. As I neared the clearing, I saw people moving around. At first I saw only one, but pretty soon two, and then four. Four people sitting in the clearing, with a fire, keeping warm, most likely. I pulled the brush back a little, and leapt into the clearing, brandishing my sword. They all spun around, surprised that anyone had found them. They were teenagers, roughly my age. Three of them were men, the other female, but one of the men was black.
"Four teens, one female, one black. This isn't something I've come across a lot out here in the woods." One drew a sword. The handle had jewels, and it looked so very familiar, but I couldn't place it. He leapt at me, and the blades clanked together. We fought for a few seconds, his blade catching my arm, before I knocked the sword into a tree, and pinned him on the ground.
"I do not wish you harm, unless you wish me harm," I stated, pulled back, and reached out to get his sword.
"No! Wait, don't touch it!" he exclaimed, leaping up. I looked over at him, and put my sword back into its sheath. "If you touch it, you'll be burned."
"Why?"
"Because I didn't give you permission to hold it. If I don't give you permission, then it will burn you." I looked at it.
"Where did you get this?"
"Sir Galahad, right after he died." I stepped back.
"So this is where the sword went?" He nodded. I looked at his face. He seemed familiar, too, but I didn't know why.
"Wait.step into the light." He moved a little closer to the fire, and I looked at him. Then it hit me. My hand covered my mouth as I realized it. His brown hair, his sometimes dark eyes. I knew that face, and now I knew why! "David?" He jerked.
"How did you.?"
"David Levin. You were in third hour Chemistry, right?" He looked at the others with him.
"Yea. How did you know that?" he asked.
"It's me! I was." I looked around for a second. "I was your partner when you accidentally blew up half the Science lab. Remember?" He stopped, to think. Then it hit him.
"Afni?" he asked. I nodded.
"Yea, David. It's me. Afni Waters."
"But, everyone said you died.in a car crash on your way to visit your dad." I shook my head.
"No. My mom must've made that up because I was going to see my dad, but one minute I'm driving down the highway, and the next I'm here.My car must have hit a tree or something."
"Actually, it drove into the side of the bank." I giggled.
"Was anyone hurt?" He shrugged.
"I don't think so. But everyone thinks something terrible happened to you, because no one can find you. So, how long have you been here?"
"Well, how long ago did you blow up the Chemistry room?" He thought for a minute.
"About ten months ago. Why?"
"Then I've been here nine and a half months." They stared at me.
"How did you survive?"
"I met this colony of people.but I don't remember what they were called. They let me come in a live in their city."
"Which way?" I jerked my thumb behind me, and then looked back at him.
"Why do you ask?"
"Well, what was that place like?" I stopped and thought.
"It was a city of all men, and eight-legged horses."
"No way!" he cried. I stepped back.
"What?"
"That city is ruled by Hel."
"Goddess of the Dead."
"Yea. How'd you know?" I smiled.
"Well, David, according to legend, she's supposed to come back with the Norse God Loki, who happens to be her father, and lead the forces of evil against the gods in the 'titanic struggle of Ragnarok.'"
"Ragna-what?" a voice asked. She turned to see a boy, laying in the dirt, beside the fire, wrapped in a sheet-like thing.
"Ragnarok. It's the end of the world."
"But, wait. How'd you stay in that city? Hel never allows women to stay in that city, ever," another person asked. There sat a girl beside the boy in the dirt. She held a cloth, appearing to be wet, in her hand. There was a little puddle beneath it. Apparently, it'd been dripping.
"Well." I unhooked my sword, and laid the belt on the ground, then sat beside it.
"When I went there, I had scars and scratches and.a lot of shit on my face, so I wasn't really much competition for her before her face began falling off."
"What happened?" David asked. I turned my head to see him, for he was still standing behind me.
"I fell. Partway down the path from the mountain, I stumbled over a snake, and fell. Rolled for quite sometime. Hit the bottom, and woke up in her city. They said I could stay, because, in my current condition, I was no threat. Great boost of my self-esteem, I'd say," I muttered. He stifled laughter. I dropped my eyes into the fire before I spoke again.
"So, who else do you have here, David?" He looked over.
"Well, the one laying on the ground is Christopher Hitchcock."
"Oh, yea. You sat in the row next to mine in English class." He shrugged.
"Then there's April O'Brien."
"Theater, right?"
"Right," she said, smiling.
"Then, Jalil Sherman."
"Hmmm.Psychology?" I asked. He looked over from his place opposite the fire from me.
"Yeah. That's right. You know, the class was beginning to miss you." I smiled.
"I miss the class, too.Christopher? You okay?"
"Oh, he ran into a tree, hurt himself pretty badly." I slid over, sitting beside him.
"Well, that explains this bump, but what about all these cuts and bruises?"
"Fell." Afni smiled.
"Well, Christopher. Do you hurt?" He looked at me, as though I was insane.
"I don't know, Afni. We've been chased by dragons, witnessed an immortal get eaten alive by a god-eating god, fought weird-ass aliens, escaped from Hel, Loki, Merlin, and a long list of other creepy shit in this dimension, and yet, you ask if I hurt?!" I raised a hand in defense.
"Christopher, if you wish me to make you feel better, do not yell at me." An English-type accent floated into my voice.
"How can you make the pain go away, unless you have some magic drug?"
"Exactly. Magic."
"Huh?" They all looked at me. I smiled.
"Listen. I have been here for a very long time. After a while, you manage to make friends with mostly all the creatures around you. The Hetwan and Coo-Hatch do not try to kill me. Loki and Merlin let me walk by them without a word. Dragons purr whenever I cross their path. Hel admires my courage for wandering in the open with a 'disfigurement that makes her the most beautiful creature around.' Ganymede's loss was mourned by all, but nothing can bring him back. Ka Anor gives me passage through his city any time I wish. With all this kindness brought out of gods and creatures more ruthless that even Keith and Senna combined and multiplied, I have been able to tap into the core of all their magical energy, and bring it to my own. The only problem I have here is Dionysus."
"How come you have a problem with the party god?" Christopher asked. I shook my head.
"He's the god of wine and vegetation, Christopher... Besides, when I try to be serious, he wants half naked women to curl up against him because it makes him comfortable. Last time he did that, I made lightning strike his drinking glass. We don't speak anymore. Now, it is as I asked. Would you like me to make your pain go away?" Christopher smiled.
"Of course." I sat Indian style beside him, and placed my hands on his chest. He looked up at me, unsure.
"Close your eyes, Christopher, please. And relax your mind." He closed his eyes. I thought hard for a few seconds. I could faintly see the light trying to pry into my closed eyes. Into my mind. I kept it out. And then, in a quick flash, it was gone. My hands were in my lap, and my eyes were open. Christopher sat up, and patted himself down.
"Whoa." I smiled.
"How do you feel?" I asked. He smiled.
"Great! Uh.but can you do something about this toga? It was all I could find before we came here." I laughed. He raised an eyebrow.
"Hang on." I turned around, and clapped by hands, then started ruffling through something that they could not see from where they were. After a minute, I clapped my hands, and turned around. I tossed him a pair of blue jeans, and a shirt.
"Whoa, cool!" he said. He hopped up, and dropped the toga. We all looked away.
"Has he lost all sense of modesty?" I asked. David nodded. "Alright. I was just checking. You guys don't seem to like it here all that much." They looked at me, and Christopher sat down.
"Of course we don't really like it here. One of the best parts here was Ganymede and the good gods."
"Ah. So you wish to go home, fully and completely?" They nodded.
"Why? I mean, it's not as if we can just walk through a door and arrive in our bodies."
"Actually, it's almost that simple." They stared at me. All of them confused, all of them wondering, their eyes trying to pry into my mind to see what I was talking about.
"You see, I know how to get you all home."
