The first night we came to La Push, it rained. The rest of my family was scouting surrounding towns. I'd been told to stay in the La Push/Forks area to be sure no orcs arrived.
Orcs are monsters that feed off of people's souls. Exorcists, like my family and myself, are responsible for destroying orcs. Each exorcist is born with some sort of "supernatural" power. For instance, I can control electricity while my father, mother and brother can control fire, water and earth respectively. These powers are hereditary, and along with other "mythical" creatures, we're sure to keep our existence a secret to humans. We even have the ability to erase people's memories, if need be.
For every family of exorcists, at least one member of said family needs to participate in a sort of organization called The Order. The Order is to exorcists as the Volturi are to vampires. However, The Order is what keeps us from living like normal humans. We don't have much of a choice in what we want to do with our lives. My father is the member of our family who works with The Order. Although he is the only one "in" The Order, we help him diligently with his missions and whatnot. If the order tells him to go someplace, we go with him.
The reason we're currently in Washington is because there have been frequent orc attacks. There are supposedly some more supernatural beings here, as well, which is probably attracting more orcs than usual. Orcs are normally attracted to beings with strong souls. Stronger beings have stronger souls; therefore, the orcs will come after them. Orcs also become stronger depending on the strength of the soul they devour. Not a very good thing, y'know?
I tried being a bit more careful with my careless running through the forest that night. I'd heard howls and barks before I'd even started my patrol, and I couldn't be sure if they were wild wolves or werewolves. I was betting on the latter, seeing as how there seemed to be a storm rolling in, and most animals don't roam the forest in the rain. A downfall to being an exorcist is the fact that not all of our senses are strengthened, like most creatures. We can't smell, see or hear any better than the average human. We are, however, much stronger and faster. We can also sense when orcs are nearby.
I brought my knees up to my chest, careful not to fall off the tree branch I'd been sitting on. I checked my watch. I still had an hour and a half until I could return home. The moment I let my arm fall back to my side, I felt the unmistakable presence of an orc. I knew something was a bit off about the feeling; it seemed more dangerous than usual. But me, I'm a second-guesser. I don't think I've ever followed my gut instinct. It's definitely one of my poorer qualities. I brushed off the feeling and jumped in a nearby tree, getting closer to my target. As I got closer, I felt my stomach churn more and more.
'Something's wrong,' was the only sentence running through my mind. Then I saw it. It looked like every other one of the monster's I'd fought in the past. It wasn't discerning in the least. The problem was the friends it had brought along. Orcs are creatures known for traveling alone. The most I'd ever seen in one place at one time was two. But here, there were about six of them. You can see how this might be a little bit of a problem. It was too late to run.
I sighed, pulled myself into a crouching position, and thanked the gods for the current thunderstorm. I was in my element, and the chance that a human would stumble along was very slim. One of the smaller orcs charged toward me first. A bolt of lightning erupted from the sky, striking the orc. It must have been one of the weaker ones, because the one blow took it out easily. I hoped the rest would be just as easy, but hey, when do things ever go my way?
I managed to destroy a couple more. There were two left now. In most cases, two orcs would be an easy victory, but I'd never used my powers so much in one fight, and I could feel my energy draining much more quickly than I'd preferred. The larger of the two orcs came at me, teeth bared. I backed up a couple of steps, just barely dodging its attack. Unfortunately, it retaliated quickly. It raised its claw and swiped at my shoulder. As soon as it made contact, I threw my opposite hand to its chest, sending what I hoped to be a critical shock through its body.
It wasn't fatal, but it did cause the orc to stumble backward a bit. I used this to my advantage and ran out of its clutches. I glanced at the other orc and noticed its gaze was fixated on something deeper in the woods. I stumbled my way further from the two monsters. Of course, I didn't get very far. Luckily, I didn't have to worry about them much longer. Whatever it was that caught the first orc's attention caused it to scurry away, the second one following closely.
In a slightly different case, I'd probably be a little more thankful that my enemies had been scared off, but I was still bleeding, still very tired, and it was still raining like hell. I sat down and leaned my back against one of the many trees and hope something amazing happened soon.
I heard more howls. I wasn't sure how to feel about this. Maybe I'd be The Big Bad Wolf's dinner. Maybe some nice wolves would take me under their wing (wing?!) and teach me the way of the wolf. Kinda like Tarzan and the monkeys, right? Very probable.
In the midst of my thoughts, I didn't realize my savior had already entered the scene, was already crouched down beside me, and had probably already asked me if I was alright. Yep, he definitely looked like he was awaiting an answer.
"I, uhh…Hm. I think I might need some help. Please." came my brilliant response. I could already see the newspaper headlines: "Retard mauled by unknown animal!"
"Do you mind if I carry you to my house?" He asked, eyeing the tattered part of my shirt. I nodded my head, letting him know it was okay. I was afraid that if I said anything else, those headlines would get worse.
He lifted me easily and walked briskly through the forest. He was a very tall, very muscular man. From what I could tell, he also had some good looks.
"What's your name?" He asked suddenly, interrupting my slight ogling.
"August Wyndle." I replied simply.
"You're new here, aren't you? What were you doing out here so late?"
"Um, yes I am new." No, I did not avoid the real question. People like me can only take one question at a time…
"What were you doing out here?" He pressed.
"Oh, it's stupid really. I got in a fight with my parents and I overreacted a little and ran away. Stereotypical teenager, I guess." I hate lying. It's horrible. I'm horrible at it. I always feel guilty when I have to lie.
We reached what I guessed to be this man's home. He shifted my weight to one arm and opened the door with his free hand. It's crazy how easy everything seems when you've got muscles.
"Emily," The man called, setting me on the couch. A woman walked into the room from what I presumed was the kitchen.
"Do you think you can take care of this girl? I need to call a couple of the boys." They exchanged some sort of meaningful glance and then the woman turned to me. It was then I noticed the three long scars running down one side of her face. She was still a beautiful person, but the scars were noticeable.
"Give me a quick second, sweetheart. I'll go get some bandages for you." She gave me a quick smile and then scurried out of the room, leaving me alone.
As my mind wandered, I started wondering why that man (whose name I've yet to have learned) was out in the forest. No sane person would be strolling through the woods at night during a thunderstorm. Of course, he was probable questioning me for the same reasons.
The woman reentered the room.
"Would you mind moving this part of your shirt out of the way?" She asked politely.
"Go ahead." I replied quickly and awkwardly.
She started bandaging my shoulder.
"So what's your name?" she asked. "I'm Emily, in case you didn't catch that."
"My name is August."
"That's a pretty name." She smiled. "So what exactly was it that did this?" she inquired, motioning toward my shoulder.
"Umm. I'm not exactly sure. It was dark, y'know? But it was big. Maybe it was a bear or something. I lied, again. She furrowed her eyebrows in what seemed to be confusion.
"Yes, it must have been a bear. How unfortunate." She finished bandaging my shoulder and handed me a clean shirt, which I slid on quickly.
Within seconds, the front door burst open and another very large guy appeared. He scanned the room quickly, not noticing Emily and I on the couch, and went into another room.
"That's Embry," she grinned cheekily. "He's probably looking for Sam. They sort of work together." She stated, as if it made the boy's strange entrance completely normal.
"They sort of work together?"
"Oh, it's hard to explain. You'll understand if you hang around here more often. Speaking of which, you're new here, aren't you?"
Way to change the subject. "Oh yeah. We actually just got here earlier today."
"Well, consider me your first friend here! What do you say to coming over in a couple of days? You can meet the rest of the guys!"
"Oh, I don't know. I'm not good with social gatherings. My dad's work moved him around a lot, so I don't make very many friends." I explained, truthfully for a change.
"That's alright. Everybody's really friendly. There'll be a lot of food, too."
Ah, food does make everything better. "Well…I'll check with my parents first, alright?"
"Sure!" She reached toward the coffee table and grabbed a pen and piece of paper. She scrawled something on the paper and handed it to me. "That's my number. Go ahead and call me anytime when you find out if you can come or not, okay?"
"Will do!" I grinned. I'd learned so far that it was pretty hard to not be happy around this woman.
Just then, Sam and the younger boy, Embry, walked into the room. Emily and I turned our attention toward them. Sam said something to Emily. I would have been paying attention, but I was preoccupied by the younger boy's strange behavior. He was staring me straight in the eye, his mouth hung slightly open, and he looked rather taken aback. It was quite possibly the most disturbing look I'd ever received from anyone in my life, not to mention it was absolutely uncalled for.
Through my peripheral vision, I could see Sam turn his head from Embry, to me, and then back to Embry. There was a long moment of awkward silence, followed by Sam clearing his throat. Emily stood, a grin plastered on her face.
"Well, August. I think we better get you home. Embry, would you mind giving her a ride?" Emily asked sweetly.
"O-of course." He stuttered, finally falling out of his trance.
Boy, Sparky's got a way with words. I smiled politely at the boy and stood. "Thank you Sam, Emily. I'm sorry for being such a burden. I'll try to have a little more sense from now on." I grinned, making my way toward the door. We bid our farewells, and Embry led me outside. I followed him to an older truck parked on the side of the street. He opened the door for me, and although it was a sweet gesture, it just made me feel even more awkward than I already had. I averted my gaze to my lap as he slid into his own seat and started the truck.
"So, where do you live?"
Stalker. "Um, on the edge of Forks, actually. It's not that far from here, I guess."
"Okay." It was silent for a few minutes. I figured I may as well learn more about this boy, if I was going to be around him semi-frequently. Plus, I wasn't so sure these people were completely human. Something about them was definitely amiss.
"So, I hear you sort of work with Sam. What exactly do you guys do?"
"We keep peace here in La Push." He answered easily.
"Oh. Like cops?" It would make a bit more sense.
"In a way, I guess."
"Okay. How old are you, then?"
"Seventeen."
"What?" I asked, honestly amazed. There was no way this boy was the same age as me. He looked like he was at least in his twenties! He chuckled at my reaction.
"And how old are you?" He asked, still smiling.
"Seventeen," I muttered. "Take a right here." I added.
"So, will I be seeing you at school?" He asked.
"Not sure yet. My parents haven't looked at the schools yet. There's only two, so I guess it's a fifty-fifty chance." I noticed his smile falter slightly. There was still something that bothered me about this boy. He seemed friendly enough, but there was definitely something wrong. I just couldn't place my finger on it. "It's this house," I said, pointing to the abode that currently housed all of my family's boxed belongings. He pulled up next to the house. "Thank you for the ride. I'm sorry I bothered you." I smiled courteously.
"It was no problem, really!" he said, a bit too eagerly. I grinned and stepped onto the curb.
"Good night." I gave him a small wave and turned my back, making my way to the front door. There were a few lights on, so I knew my family had returned. Before I'd reached the door, it opened, revealing my mother. She glanced at the truck and then gave me a skeptical look.
"Come in, dear," She stated simply. "There are some things we need to discuss."