Chapter one: Arrival
"-and today shows us sunny skies with a few clouds at 90o,"the radio announcer said as a girl with dark hair groaned and slapped the snooze button on her alarm clock. She lifted her head up just enough from her pillow to see the time-7:00-and today was a Saturday.
"Of all times for me to take freakin' riding lessons," Kara said as she rolled over and off her bed with a thump. She sat up with a yelp and levered herself to her feet and trudged toward the bathroom. "My mom had to take the early lesson," she finished.
The fifteen year old went off into a daze as she took a shower and got dressed, not even aware of what she put on. She then stuffed her C.D. player and C.D.s, her deodorant and a book into her backpack. Then she stuffed her feet into her riding boots and walked into her garage. Kara's mother wasn't out there yet so she took some time to actually tie her boots and put on some makeup before someone she knew saw her. "It's not like anyone cares anyways," she muttered to herself.
Kara turned her attention back to her boots and suddenly felt as if she wasn't alone. She looked up quickly to find a VERY tall man looking around as though in a daze.
He was cute, on Kara's standards, though others may think hat he was too tall. He looked like he was in his mid-twenties, with long black hair tied back into a horse tail and tan skin. His clothes looked as if they were shipped from the middle ages. Over it all he wore a long black robe that buttoned high at the neck. Kara could have sworn that it looked familiar.
Kara stood up suddenly; hooking the chair she had been sitting on with her leg and chucking it at him. He looked up from rubbing his head suddenly and cried out, raising a hand. The chair exploded about a foot in front of him.
Kara gaped at the man and reached back to grab something, anything that could help her. Hmmm. a shoe and a wrench from her dad's tool box. She feinted to throw the shoe at him with her left hand and then heaved the wrench at him with the other hand. He raised another hand and everything seemed to pause. Kara found that every move that she made seem to take tremendous effort. As the wrench clattered to the ground halfway between her and the man, she felt the air lighten around her again.
Kara raised both of her hands in surrender, "I give up ok?" She placed her hands on her hips, "Who are you, what do you want, and what the hell are you wearing?"
"That is not important now," the man replied, shaking his head in a dismissive manner, "but what is important now is that you come with me."
"No way!" Kara said, backing up and grabbing at her backpack while still keeping her eye on the black-haired man. He took a step toward her and Kara made the stupid mistake of tripping.
Kara cried out as a thick, black substance enveloped her and pulled her down. She screamed and clawed at the substance as it went across her mouth and preventing her from breathing. She knew that this was the end and she stopped struggling. Then suddenly, it all stopped as a strong pair of arms grabbed her and yanked her up.
And the goop was gone. Kara was standing in the middle of a peaceful meadow; cows and sheep looked up at her for a moment before returning to their grazing. She surveyed her surroundings with her green eyes. Before her loomed up a CASTLE. it sort of looked like Cinderella's castle in Disney World, only without the blue towers. Looking behind her, she saw a dense wood of pines, and surprisingly, a horse grazing.
"Crap this is really weird," Kara said as she rubbed her head, "Dude I HAVE to be dreaming, but then again, maybe I don't want this to end, it is pretty cool." (OOC: talking to yourself is a sign of insanity) Clucking to the horse, Kara eventually got up onto it's back and used it's halter to steer it towards the castle. Soon, she found a dirt road. Little did she know that a blonde woman surveyed her from the forest, cloaked by an invisibility spell.
"-and today shows us sunny skies with a few clouds at 90o,"the radio announcer said as a girl with dark hair groaned and slapped the snooze button on her alarm clock. She lifted her head up just enough from her pillow to see the time-7:00-and today was a Saturday.
"Of all times for me to take freakin' riding lessons," Kara said as she rolled over and off her bed with a thump. She sat up with a yelp and levered herself to her feet and trudged toward the bathroom. "My mom had to take the early lesson," she finished.
The fifteen year old went off into a daze as she took a shower and got dressed, not even aware of what she put on. She then stuffed her C.D. player and C.D.s, her deodorant and a book into her backpack. Then she stuffed her feet into her riding boots and walked into her garage. Kara's mother wasn't out there yet so she took some time to actually tie her boots and put on some makeup before someone she knew saw her. "It's not like anyone cares anyways," she muttered to herself.
Kara turned her attention back to her boots and suddenly felt as if she wasn't alone. She looked up quickly to find a VERY tall man looking around as though in a daze.
He was cute, on Kara's standards, though others may think hat he was too tall. He looked like he was in his mid-twenties, with long black hair tied back into a horse tail and tan skin. His clothes looked as if they were shipped from the middle ages. Over it all he wore a long black robe that buttoned high at the neck. Kara could have sworn that it looked familiar.
Kara stood up suddenly; hooking the chair she had been sitting on with her leg and chucking it at him. He looked up from rubbing his head suddenly and cried out, raising a hand. The chair exploded about a foot in front of him.
Kara gaped at the man and reached back to grab something, anything that could help her. Hmmm. a shoe and a wrench from her dad's tool box. She feinted to throw the shoe at him with her left hand and then heaved the wrench at him with the other hand. He raised another hand and everything seemed to pause. Kara found that every move that she made seem to take tremendous effort. As the wrench clattered to the ground halfway between her and the man, she felt the air lighten around her again.
Kara raised both of her hands in surrender, "I give up ok?" She placed her hands on her hips, "Who are you, what do you want, and what the hell are you wearing?"
"That is not important now," the man replied, shaking his head in a dismissive manner, "but what is important now is that you come with me."
"No way!" Kara said, backing up and grabbing at her backpack while still keeping her eye on the black-haired man. He took a step toward her and Kara made the stupid mistake of tripping.
Kara cried out as a thick, black substance enveloped her and pulled her down. She screamed and clawed at the substance as it went across her mouth and preventing her from breathing. She knew that this was the end and she stopped struggling. Then suddenly, it all stopped as a strong pair of arms grabbed her and yanked her up.
And the goop was gone. Kara was standing in the middle of a peaceful meadow; cows and sheep looked up at her for a moment before returning to their grazing. She surveyed her surroundings with her green eyes. Before her loomed up a CASTLE. it sort of looked like Cinderella's castle in Disney World, only without the blue towers. Looking behind her, she saw a dense wood of pines, and surprisingly, a horse grazing.
"Crap this is really weird," Kara said as she rubbed her head, "Dude I HAVE to be dreaming, but then again, maybe I don't want this to end, it is pretty cool." (OOC: talking to yourself is a sign of insanity) Clucking to the horse, Kara eventually got up onto it's back and used it's halter to steer it towards the castle. Soon, she found a dirt road. Little did she know that a blonde woman surveyed her from the forest, cloaked by an invisibility spell.