'Not again'.
These words where the only thing going through Lief's head as he swiftly sprinted along the narrow ally. The buildings seemed to push in on him from all sides, slowly pushing all air from his lungs. These buildings stretched up for ever on each side of him, plain, smooth, and dull. Lief could hear the quick clamber of his pursuers behind him slowly but steadily closing in.
There where five of them, one was a tall scrawny boy who would have been easily taken down if not for the other four, the second was a short plump boy who was puffing with the strain of running. Two others seemed to be twins almost exactly the same height and looking almost identical they where plain, six foot and partly muscled. There fifth member, the one leading the entire group, he was a monster.
He looked about nine-teen years old and seven feet tall, a giant. He was broad shouldered but was easily taking the strain of the chase with complete ease. He seemed to be leading the group with an iron fist barking orders to move more quickly, his name was Dain. He was wearing a black leather jacket with a holster snapped to his belt.
He was from the silver hand gang, and he had a gun.
Lief himself was a part of the red scorpion gang the silver hand hated the red scorpion, and for one simple reason. The destroyed there allies, the golden eagles.
That day Lief had left his own fire arm under his bed so he would be able to go to school. Unfortunately for Lief this was the exact day they had planed to take him out.
'"F" it' Lief thought as he felt a burning in his left arm. They had shot him. Lucky for him it was just a glancing blow and hadn't done too much damage, he'd survive, but only if he could get away from Dain and his gang. If he didn't they'd eventually catch him and kill him.
Lief tried to keep his speed up but knew that he would fail soon. He looked around widely for an escape. They had left the ally and were now in a open court yard Lief could hear the faint eco of church bells ringing signaling the end of today's session. Lief remembered back when he was ten and his mother always dragged him to the endless sessions that he never even listened to. Lief felt a small tear come to his eye, he hadn't cried for three years, ever since his father died. Now Lief thought of how his mother would react when they told her that he died. How long would it take her to get over it?
Lief had lost all feeling in his left arm 'maybe it wasn't a glancing blow' Lief thought. Lief glanced Father Doom exiting the chapel. Ironic that a priest is named Doom isn't it? Lief needed someway to get to the chapel but his pursuers were close and who knows what they would do to get to him, Lief didn't want to sacrifice Father Doom he was a vary good man, his sermons where the only ones that he could stand preaching of a land across the universe with dragons and an evil great enough to challenge satin. Most people at this time left but my mother let me stay and lissen to his stories because that's all they were, stories of a madman.
Flowing through the gates of the chapel, Lief grabbed the Priest and drove both of them into the chapel halls closing the doors behind them.
"Lief? Is that you" Father Doom asked.
"Um, ya" Lief replied lamely.
"I told you this gang stuff would get you killed, kids always trying to fit in why cant they just find a book club or something, excitement does not end well in most cases" Doom rambled.
"Sorry father" Lief mumbled.
"No matter the past cant be undone all that can be seen is the future" Doom said.
Lief sighed, Doom always talked in riddles, 'everything worth learning is worth working for' is what he always said, never gave a strait answer.
"Father-"
"Now Lief we both know that I am not qualified to be a priest so stop with the father stuff" Doom cut in. Lief shrugged at that. "Now lissen carefully because your friends out there are getting vary angry and will soon be joining us"
"What the bloody hell are you talking about?" Lief asked rudely. Doom grabbed Lief by the shoulder and swung him to the ground with surprising strength.
"Lissen boy I'm not playing games, you MUST follow what I tell you or for the sake of Deltora a whole world may parish" Doom said in a stone cold voice surprising Lief even more than the strength he used on Lief.
"Okay" Lief whimpered he had to admit Doom scared the bloody hell out of him.
"Take this, run I will hold them for a little you must not let them have it, don't try to fight them, if they corner you than speak these words 'Philia Deltora Endre' and you will live just remember 'Philia Deltora Enre' now go!" Doom harshly shooed him away leaving an object in Lief's palm just as the doors burst open and Dain walked in.
"Well Father looks like the end of the rode for you" Dain mockingly said than leveled his pistol at Doom and shot.
"Finally I can rest, I am coming Anna" Doom said as he fell backward in to the alter that he preached from every Sunday.
"Boss lets finish this quickly someone's bound to hear that" one of the twins said.
"Shut up Bak 3 I am not finished with the boy" Dain hissed back. Lief thought that now would be a good time to leave, might leave the studying of the object till tomorrow.
"Not so fast Liefy I'm not done" Dain said in this sing-song voice dripping with suppressed menace. He leveled his gun again and shot.
Lief knew what to do he turned and faced the bullet strait on allowing it to hit him in the shoulder. Than Lief quietly, to Dain's surprise, whispered "Philia Deltora Endre" and vanished. Leaving Dain there in the chapel with a hot pistol surrounded by police.
For Dain everything was a blur, he was handcuffed, but he didn't feel it much, he could always shift form to escape, he was thinking of what his master would do to him as soon as he told him that Lief had escaped to Deltora, and how he get back without showing his true colors to all of Great Brittan.