Blood of a Warrior
Chapter 1
Whoosh!
Cheyenne ducked just in time as her opponent's fist flew within inches of her face. Her muscles tensed, and she lashed out with an uppercut to the ribs, desperate to land a hit.
Her opponent dodged, blocking her attack and spinning around with a swift roundhouse kick. Cheyenne blocked, barely deflecting the blow, and quickly sidestepped, giving her a clean shot to the back of the head. Whack!
The man stumbled, stunned by the blow. Huffing out a nervous breath, Cheyenne jumped on her chance and wrapped her arms around his neck in a chokehold. She leaned back, straining against his attempts to escape. She set her feet. The seconds seemed like hours. Then finally, she felt his body relax, falling limply against her grip.
Breathing out exhaustion, Cheyenne loosened her hold, grateful for the respite. She was about to set the man down, when suddenly he jerked up, knocking his fists into a weak spot on her arms and making her cry out in surprise. In an instant, the man was free of her hold and swept her legs out from under her, her body thudding ungracefully onto the ground.
Cheyenne coughed. "Ow . . ." The man started laughing; an amused, hearty chuckle. She lifted her head off of the bright green grass and grimaced, wishing it had been as soft of a cushion as it appeared. She gave him a half-hearted glare. "Oh, don't even start!"
Her brother grinned, mischief evident all over his face as he extended a hand to help her up. "I told you! You'll just have to keep practicing, otherwise there's no hope of ever throwing me to ground."
Cheyenne reluctantly took his hand and let him pull her upright, bits of grass and dirt falling off of her shirt. "Hey, I had you in a headlock! And a pretty good one at that: you were actually starting to pass out. C'mon, you were beaten by your little sis, and you know it," she huffed.
Tyler folded his arms and smirked. "Please, I had control the entire time. I just made you think I was passing out, 'cause then you would drop your guard. And that's exactly what you did."
Cheyenne sputtered, trying not to laugh. "Well how I am supposed to beat someone of such greater experience and has a black belt already?" She bowed dramatically, a small smile slipping through her goofy act. "O wise master Thinks-He-Knows-It-All?"
"Excuses, excuses." Tyler laughed again, and Cheyenne broke out into a grin, giving up on trying to harass him.
The sun beat down warmly, signaling the coming heat of a midsummer's afternoon. A cool breeze countered the sun's advances, ruffling the two siblings' clothes and brushing the grass back and forth in mini waves. Cheyenne inhaled deeply, grateful for the good weather and a chance for her older brother to be home again. Looking out to the tree line that stretched out behind their house, an idea quickly formed in her mind. "Hey, it's gonna get pretty hot out here soon; wanna head down to the creek?"
Tyler immediately took off, running at a nearly backwards angle as he shouted, "Last one there is buying lunch tomorrow!"
"Oh c'mon!" Cheyenne laughed and sprinted after him, disappearing into the shade of the trees.
"So how's college been treating you? Well, I assume, since you're still so dang fast?" Cheyenne teased. He, of course, had beaten her to the water's edge, already sitting at their favorite rocky shore when she arrived, shaking her head and out of breath.
Tyler leaned back and stretched his arms out. "Yeah, it's been good. Been meeting some great guys, all my classes are going alright, found a decent part-timer; so far, no major worries."
"Ooh, did you get a chance to watch Age of Ultron yet? Or any more of the Doctor Who episodes I told you to watch?"
"You and your geek-ness," Tyler laughed. "No, not yet, my schedule's been kinda hectic. Looking forward to it though, those new trailers for Ultron looked awesome."
"It was really good," Cheyenne grinned. "Maybe this week we can remedy your lack of culture."
Tyler rolled his eyes, chuckling again. "Alright, sounds like a plan. Though knowing you, you could probably just recite the entire script to me and that'd be it." He elbowed her lightly. "How about you? Junior year give you any trouble?"
Cheyenne snorted, closing her eyes for a moment. "Ugh . . . let's just say I'm extremely thankful that I've only got one more year to go." She paused for a moment, listening to the gentle sounds of the water flowing past them. Her mind wandered, sifting through all the memories of the last few months, most of them not so pleasant. She sensed Tyler's mood sober, as though he was remembering the unpleasant moments too.
He waited a minute before voicing his thoughts. "How's everything going with Mom and Dad?"
"We've had our ups and downs the past few months." Rubbing her hands against her arms, she avoided making eye contact. "It's been getting better, but they still think I'm not living up to my potential. Which I just completely don't understand; I mean, I'm doing my best to step out and get involved in stuff – you know, find my niche and all that – but nothing seems to stick. I'm pretty good at some things that I've tried, and some of it's been fun, but none of it just feels right, you know?" She leaned forward and set her chin in her hand.
"Yeah, I know what you mean." Tyler glanced at her, scratching his head. Both of them sat silently, absorbed by their thoughts.
Finally, Tyler spoke up again. "So . . . are you still having those weird dreams lately? I know you said that they'd slowed down a good bit for a while there."
Cheyenne fidgeted, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable. "They're, uh . . ." She swallowed nervously, remembering the first time she'd come to Tyler and tried to explain the strange, intense dreams she was suddenly having. The dreams had started just after the new year hit, and they came to her almost every night, getting more and more intense each time. Each one began with a man dressed in a long brown robe, like something a mage or wizard might wear, and he would try and tell her about some missing piece of her heritage. The man called himself Ancarion, and would insist that he knew who she really was. That he knew what she really was. Then, he'd take her to a room with a balcony overlooking a breathtaking view of a mountain range, and, depending on the night, he'd teach her about one of two things: either about the history of the Skybenders (the race he claimed she was descended from), or about how she could control her supposed abilities. The dreams always ended with an argument from her, saying that this was just some weird dream and not real life.
But when the dreams kept coming, for several weeks and then eventually becoming several months, Cheyenne was desperate to tell someone what was going on. Tyler had been home for spring break, and she had explained everything to him. He'd assured her she wasn't going crazy, and after that, the dreams had slowed down, almost to the point of being nonexistent. Until about one month before summer began, and they'd come back in full force.
Cheyenne let out an exasperated sigh, shrugging her shoulders. "I don't know how to describe it. All of a sudden they're back, every single night, and they're getting really vivid, like almost to the point where they seem completely real." She waved her hand. "I know they're not real, but it's getting kinda scary."
Tyler stared at her, concern evident on his face. "Weird . . . have you thought about maybe writing any of them down?" Cheyenne gave him an odd look. "I mean, maybe that would help; just getting it all down might clear your head. You know?"
She tilted her head to the side, letting the idea sink in. "I don't know. I guess it's worth a try."
Silence passed between them as they paused in thought. The heat of the afternoon seeped through the shady canopy above them, warming the air. Birds chirped from somewhere up in the trees, and the stream continued in it's steady, smooth flow.
Water. A slight ache began to throb in her head, along with a dry scratch in her throat. Cheyenne licked her lips. "Hey, do you think maybe we should go get some water? After that workout we had and the heat coming on now, it seems like a good idea."
Tyler perked up at the change to a less serious subject. "That sounds great actually; how about I run up to the house and bring some back? And maybe some of that ice cream I saw Mom stash in the freezer yesterday?" His mischievous grin came back, spreading wide across his face.
"Food snatcher," Cheyenne teased.
Tyler shrugged. "Hey, while I'm home, all food is free. Might as well enjoy it, am I right?" He laughed to himself as he got up and walked off towards the house, leaving Cheyenne alone with her thoughts.
Cheyenne sighed. Another breeze swept through the forest, rustling the leaves and blowing her hair to the side, exposing her neck to the refreshing coolness. She gazed at the stream, her eyes turning glassy as she thought deeply within herself. Who am I, really? She hated to admit it, but the question bothered her a lot more than she had let on to Tyler. It wasn't just that she struggled to find a hobby or career path she would thrive with. No, it went beyond that; there was a deep sense that she was missing something. Something vital. A feeling that she was out of place here in the cycle of everyday life.
What am I missing?
As if to answer, the ache that was throbbing in her brain sharpened, piercing like a migraine she had once a few years back. Wincing and clutching her head, Cheyenne stood to her feet. If she was this dehydrated, then she needed to get back to the house, or at least meet Tyler halfway. She took a step towards the path that lead to the backyard, but was stopped by a sudden stabbing pain in her chest. Grunting, she tried to steady herself as the throbbing in her head intensified, keeping in time with the pounding knives in her heart. She needed to get help, now.
Before she could even make a move to reach for her phone, a blinding flash of blue light shot out from within her; rushing, pulsing energy that swirled into a cyclone of raw power in seconds. Cheyenne gaped, her throat caught, gasping, unable to scream or shout for help. The energy grew brighter and rushed around her faster and faster, until she couldn't see anything outside the wall of pure light. Her heart pounded wildly, the pain in her head turning into agony, and something deep inside her soul snapped, like floodgates being opened for a tidal wave of sheer force to burst through. Her whole body shook. She couldn't hear. The light blinded her. She fell to her knees, tears welling in her eyes, praying for the chaos to end.