Huffing and puffing, I ran. I ran for lives…for the lives of my friends. Air ripped itself from my lungs and pushed through my nostrils like a bellows. Gasp, huff. Gasp, huff. My feet moved to the pattern of my breathing.

Trees whooshed by in a dark flash of green. I tripped over a root…for the eighth time, it seemed. Why didn't I bring a stupid flashlight?

Oh, right, because I was terrified out of my freakin' mind.

Moving through the dark was a very tough feat for me. I had fallen only eight times…that was a good thing, unfortunately. Apparently, I'm not the most graceful person alive. Pshhh… Granted, I was only about as graceful as an ox with a broken leg.

I betcha want to know why I've been running for an hour, right? Ha, nice try.

Right now, we have a more important mission. Saving my gang of super-freaks. The Cabal has taken them away. Fortunately, Kit gave everyone some numbers, so if something like this should ever happen, we'd have allies. I had a number stuffed in my pocket, but I need to keep running and get to the nearest payphone I could find. They could very well still be after me.

An hour later, I entered a small coffee shop, and spied a payphone. I sent up a mental thank-you to whoever helped with this one.

I dialed the number and it rang a few times. On the last ring, a voice with forced cheerfulness answered, "Hello, Cortez-Winterbourne Supernatural Law Firm, how may we help you?"

Did this chick just say what I think she said?

"Um, yes, I think I may need some help."

"Yeah, that's what people usually call for. What's your problem?" The voice of the young woman was filled with sarcasm.

"My friends and I, we've been targeted by the Cabal. They've taken everyone but me, and I found this number through someone trustworthy."

"Which Cabal?"

"Uh…I'm not sure…"

She sighed loudly and I could practically see her pinching the bridge of her nose.

"You'll need to be transferred to Lucas," she said, and before I could protest, I was on hold. This day has not been going well.

"Hello, I hear you're having some problem's with a Cabal?" a man asked.

"Um, yes."

"What's your name?"

"Chloe Saunders."

"Can you tell me what type of supernatural you and your friends are?"

"Uh, yeah, Lauren's a human, Kit's a sorcerer, Tori's a witch, Simon's a sorcerer – like his dad, Kit, Derek's a werewolf, and I'm a necromancer."

"Well," he began, "I can see why they would want Lauren – she's a human who knows the secret.. Is there something that you're maybe leaving out…something you may have done, or extra abilities you have?"

I told him everything.

"Okay, we can cross out the Cortez Cabal – I would have remembered something like that. That leaves the Boyds, Nasts, and St. Clouds. I'll send a jet for you, and call my friend, Sean Nast. Where are you?"

I told him. Just…something about him seemed…trustworthy. To the point, like… No, stop it, you're just torturing yourself. We'll get him back.

A few hours later, a car came to my hotel and drove me to the airport. A gleaming plane flashed in the runway and I was led to it. I had no clue where I was going, but, I trusted the man – Lucas.

Anyway, this jet was amazing. The chairs were lush and the carpet was heaven to my feet. They even fed me. This was the life. I fell asleep, with a full belly and my worries went away for the 3 hour flight.

The sound of the plane landing woke me up. I looked up to see a male flight attendant about to tap my shoulder. He moved back down the aisle when I woke.

A man strode down the aisle, shook my hand confidently, looked at me…and froze. "I –I didn't think you'd be this young…you can't be over sixteen!"

"Fifteen," I corrected, but was secretly giddy he'd guessed above my age…'bout time. He seemed to regain his composure in a few seconds, though. He hailed a cab and we drove off. He talked.

"So, I'm Lucas and I talked to Sean. He said he'll look further into it, but it definitely sounds familiar. What do you know about the Cabal?" I told him. "Hm, so this Edison Group…how did you kids end up in their custody?" I told him. "Interesting…"

He thoughtfully looked out the window for the rest of the ride.

Later, we got to a warehouse. He ushered me inside and for a second, I thought I was toast. Then I saw the massive security system. Nice. We stepped inside. It was pretty extravagant for an office…in the white house, even.

I followed Lucas up to his office where there was a woman with kind eyes and long hair waiting. Lucas sat down next to her.

"I'm Paige," she chirped with a friendly smile and extended hand. We exchanged pleasantries and got down to business.

This will be at LEAST a two-part one-shot, okay, guys? Not that you have a choice. =) Glad I'm back? =D Can't tell you how sorry I am! I've had eighth-grade Promotion and parties and I've been really busy.

If you're not familiar with the Otherworld series – read it. Now.

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