Author's Notes

Hey everyone, so I've noticed all these issues have started since I added Songs of the Fallen to it's bright category. I am thinking about bringing back the first version and just adding back the other chapters, because it's getting almost ridiculous that readers and even me cannot access anything. Let me know what you all think, if I should switch back to the misc. version or keep it here, because I can only really update when the account is working. I can't even search for the letter B for bright so yeah let me know. Anyways, enjoy!

15

People were running over people, knocking everyone down. Screaming filled my ears and all I could see was the back of Kandomere's hand as we too pushed through people. I heard more gun shots and saw people falling to the ground. We moved between two buildings watching the chaos.

"This is Kandomere to base. We have a AS-25, I repeat we have an active shooter downtown on Northbroad Street positioned at the East wing insurance company! I need back up now!" Kandomere was shouting over his phone. Suddenly, he groaned and crouched immediately gripping his shoulder. My eyes widened as I crouched to him.

"You're hit!" I said watching his hand stain with blood.

"I'll be okay!" he said and suddenly I heard a bang right beside me causing us both to jump as a bullet had hit the wall beside my shoulder. Kandomere took my hand.

"We gotta move!" he yelled and we ran from our cover. I looked around caught glimpses of cops aiming all around the sky. Shot after shot, the policemen fell and I couldn't even think. A crowd had rushed our way and immediately slammed through us. I feel Kandomere's hand leave mine.

"Odette!" he screams as we're separated from the crowd. I'm forced to run with the crowd everyone is ducking behind cars and anything that could provide them shelter. I fall to the ground, and am immediately feel feet kicking me. I did my best to curl and so I would not be too injured. Once the feet leave me, I see I am by myself, well without Kandomere. I uncurl myself hearing sobbing in the distance and I look up and slowly begin to make it to my feet. I see a woman on the ground in the middle of the street. She has tan skin and long curly hair in a tank and jean jacket and pants. She's holding someone close to her, someone shot. I look at her more closely and notice it's a little girl with two spots of red in her chest and I winced at the sight. She's crying and bawling and holding the girl closer rocking her back and forth. The child was dead it was very clear. But the mother's face concerns me now. She starts to tense, her face growing blank some as she looks up and all around for something, maybe an answer. Her face starts to form a scowl and she slowly began to lie her child down.

Oh lord. She slowly begins to face me, her eyes dead and her face wet with tears. I was standing now as I recognized her stance and posture. She's a siren and I knew with the pain and rage she was feeling, she needed to take her anger out on someone.

"Odette!" I hear Kandomere. I turn quickly seeing him a few feet in front of me. My eyes widened as I turned and looked at the woman who raised her hands up, curling her fingers and she began to inahale. She was going to let out a deadly wail, a scream I had not released since Geylin Tollison. Her pained voice alone would destroy many and kill many. I turned and looked at Kandomere to see him taking a few steps toward me. I panted hard before quickly running toward him.

"Everyone covers your ears!" I screamed. It wouldn't do them much good. It wouldn't do anyone much good who wasn't a siren. I used all my might to run to Kandomere glancing over my shoulder to see the mother's mouth parting and I looked back at Kandomere to see him stop moving. "Kandomere!" The least I could do was cover him, his body his ears, so that they may be somewhat protected. I looked back to see the mother's eyes were full white and I heard the loud screech she released and my body vibrated already with the feeling. I was growing closer to Kandomere and immediately I jumped into him. His arms caught me and I clapped my hands over his ears. He swung our bodies behind an eighteen-wheeler and immediately I heard what sounded like explosions. I hummed gently against Kandomere so he could only hear my voice, my melody which would shield him from the loud drum bursting noise. I looked over my shoulder to see people's bodies bursting like balloons. My eyes widened in utter horror as men, women and children orcs and humans were gone in seconds. Cars and truck's glass burst and shattered everywhere. People who hid behind objects were screaming on the ground covering their ears in pain. I looked down at Kandomere as he held me close and kept humming. I could feel my clothes shredding and skin being cut before the loud screech. Kandomere's arms were ripping open lightly, but the truck provided shelter from the initial blast, and without him hearing her scream, his brain wouldn't really burst. She would have to stop I know that for sure. And after a few seconds, the screaming died down. I looked up some and looked down at Kandomere. He panted hard as he looked up at me. I knew this wasn't the end. It couldn't be. I quickly pulled my body from him and ran to the end of the truck

"Odette, where are you going?" he asked and I looked around the truck to see the mother was panting hard and ragged, but she began to inhale again and my eyes widened as I knew she was going to scream again. I looked at the ground to see shards of glass shattered everywhere. I looked at Kandomere quick.

"Stay here." I said and without much thought, I grabbed a large jagged shard of glass and once more began to run fast toward the woman who was preparing to level the entire block with her painful yell. I used all my might and energy running across blood and bodies to get to this woman. Just as she was about to scream, I yelled hard and rammed the shard of glass right into her neck and she groaned out low, a gurgling sound emitted from her. I whimper some pressing the shard deeper into her neck and I watched tears stream down her eyes as blood poured from her lips. I shook violently and rested my other hand behind her head caressing her hair as she began to fall back. I grabbed her body and helped her lie back on the ground. I moaned in pain as I lied her down slowly and removed the shard from her neck.

"I'm sorry." I said shivering. "I'm so sorry." She gurgled a bit more and slowly turned her head to look at her daughter. She raised her hand up trying to reach her hand. I gently lifted the girl's hand and made sure it could touch her own. She cried some and looked at me. I gently stroked her cheek some.

"Hush now… my baby… be still love, don't cry. Sleep as you're rocked by the stream." I sang in a gentle whisper. The mother looked up at me and gave a gentle smile as if happy I was singing, happy a siren was here. "Sleep and remember my last lullaby. So I'll be with you when you dream." Her eyes finally closed and all life left her body. I slowly stood up shaking violently as I noticed the shard was still in my hand. I dropped it ever so slowly, tears streaming down my face, the last bits of my clothes fell to the ground leaving me naked. I could hear whirring above me and I looked up to see helicopters were coming down. I just looked back down at the two dead sirens, one killed by an unknown shooter, the other, killed by another siren. My mouth dropped in pain and I lifted my hands and covered my head and shame.

"Odette!" I heard Kandomere call out and I turned to him and he was standing there, holding his wounded arm. I had never felt such betrayal from myself. He moved up to me and took hold of me covering my bare body.

It was absolute chaos. The hospital was filled with wounded patients, doctors and nurses are running around pointing to rooms where patients on medical beds can go. There's crying and yelling in pain and I was just lying down in a room listening to it all. Kandomere got a room on the top floor with guards watching over the place. His arm was in a sling, but it was only a flesh wound. He would be healed in no time. He was in yet another expensive suit looking down at me from the side of the bed.

"You did what you had to do." he said firmly. I could hear he was trying to be sincere, but he couldn't bring himself to do so with his men all around. I was quiet for a moment thinking of the shooter who caused all this. Who shot that child and made her mother almost level the block. I looked over at Kandomere and slowly sat up, but he raised his hand. "Rest, don't try and move."

"He killed everyone he shot, but he missed me and he only grazed you." I said and shook my head. "I couldn't tell if it were a human, elf, orc or one of the other species. But whoever he was, he knew that woman was a siren. Kandomere, he shot her child twice… twice.."

Kandomere's eyes softened now and he leaned over me caressing my cheek.

"Let my team handle it." he said and I shook my head. It wasn't up to me.

"Where is she!" I hear my mother calling from outside.

"I want to know who the low down dirty bastard was that tried to kill my daughter!" I heard my dad call out.

"This is a secure floor you all need to leave." An officer said. My family? Here?

"You have five seconds to get out of our way!" Mother threatened. I took hold of Kandomere's arm and with my eyes asked if he would let them in. He sighed heavily before looking at the door.

"Let them in. Close family only." he demanded and the door was flung opened and my parents led the way in with my siblings behind them. My uncles and aunts waited outside as the door closed. Mother was at my bed side in seconds.

"Oh god, look at you. Oh my baby are you okay?" she asked, voice trembling and I nodded as she was touching my face kissing all over it.

"Mother I am okay." I said. She and father were in their outfits from earlier as was Marco. Percival was in a white shirt and black vest and tie with slick black pants. He had mom's complexion and beautiful worried green eyes. He had a shaven head that he used to make him look more serious. Arliss was standing behind Mom, looking me over in silence too relieved to speak. He was tall with broad shoulders and a low singing voice that he used in the forms of rap. He's in a white hoodie and matching pants. Paz looks like he was at a basketball game. He had on black sweats and a tank, his long curls are in a messy bun. He was short for his age, but his voice could carry farther than any siren in the neighborhood. Venus, was beside me as well. Her long hair flowed down her face hiding her sharp cheek bones and vibrant eyes. She's in a beige one piece suit with heals to match.

"It's all over the news. A lone gunman just open fired on the crowd." Father announced.

"They don't know who it was. Probably an orc." Marco said with disgust.

"Or an elf." Venus said looking over my shoulder at Kandomere coldly and now everyone took notice of him.

"Who are you?" Father asked sternly and my brothers began to move upon me as if trying to shield me from Kandomere. Kandomere gave a firm stare.

"My name is Kandomere. I am the head of the Homeland Security's Magic Task force and I am currently dating your daughter." he explained.

"The damn." Arliss snapped and Father raised his hand stopping any forms of protest my siblings were ready to give.

"Dad, he protected me during the entire thing. For god sake's he took a bullet in order to do so." I said. Mother looked up at my father from her position and Dad just stared at Kandomere giving his usual intimidating stare, but Kandomere's stare is just as hard and my dad straightened up his suit some and walked over to him and stood before him.

"Then let me shake the hand of the elf who saved my daughter's life." he said raising his hand to Kandomere who nodded and took his hand shaking it.

"I will always be there to protect your daughter." he said and I sighed with relief at the interaction. My father nodded in agreement.

"Have you gotten any leads on who did this?" he asked. Kandomere nodded.

"We have a few. I am having video footage pulled around the insurance company where the shooter stood and from other buildings around them. We both got a look at the shooter, but he wearing a mask and all black. He didn't want to be seen, so I can only assume isn't a human. I will catch him." he said and my father nodded.

"I trust you will. Let's go everyone, Odette is in good hands. I hope to see you both at our cookout this weekend. We will have much to celebrate and mourn." he said. I nodded slowly.

"We will be there." Kandomere said and Dad nodded.

"Good man." he said. Mother kissed my cheek and slowly moved from me.

"If you need anything call me." she replied before taking my dad's and moving from the room. My siblings each gave me a hug before walking out the room eyeing Kandomere one by one with intimidating stares as they left. Marco was the last to leave. Kandomere stared at him carefully and with mild warning.

"Cute ears you have… if anything happens to my sister I will cut those and your balls off." he threatened lowly. Kandomere's eyes hardened.

"If you were anyone else, I would have you arrested for threatening a federal officer." he said. Marco made a low hmph noise.

"Good man." he replied with a smirk before exiting the room. Marco was not one you wanted to cross, but family meant everything to him, so I wasn't entirely offended by his blunt threat.