The Awakening Ch. 01

Michael liked the night. He especially liked the stars. To him they seemed like millions of eyes observing him and everyone else on Earth. At night everything was sharper-smells, sounds even noises. The eighteen year old had just graduated high school and this night out in the woods, which surrounded the small town of Ravenville was his way of celebrating. His parents would probably have their own gifts for him, but that would come later. Right now he only wanted to be alone, away from civilisation and enjoy the night, alone. He was a loner by nature and by inclination.

Michael drifted back to that time in his 8th grade. His hands formed into fists almost unconsciously. He remembered the feel of his blows landing on Kevin's face. He also remembered the kick that had broken the kneecap. Michael shook his head from side to side to get rid of the recollections. That was in the past, something he wanted to forget. With a small sigh he looked back up into the sky still lost in his thoughts.

So when the attack came he was completely unprepared. He had been standing in the middle of a small clearing, looking up at the sky when the attack started. Something struck him a heavy blow on his mid-section propelling him nearly 10ft backwards onto a tree trunk. He slid down and came to a rest on the cold ground. Acting on instinct he rolled himself sideways still down. The tree with which he had collided shattered apart explosively. Michael thanked his instincts. As a fighter his instincts had always been excellent. He listened to it now. Pushing himself back onto his feet, he headed for the tree-line. He took a running jump to catch onto a low branch, using the strength of his arms to propel himself upwards. Before he could jump to another one the branch was sliced off leaving Michael to fall to the ground.

'Fucking finally...' thought Michael.

He turned the fall into a roll. Grabbing the sliced off branch while getting upright on one knee, He whipped the branch in a smooth sideways motion to his right. It struck something obviously soft and alive. He was able to look at his attacker properly for the first time since the attack had begun. What Michael saw made his mouth fell open in surprise: 'You are a girl!'

He wasn't prepared for how beautiful she was. Her clothes accentuated her figure. It was both hard and soft at the same time. She was petite; certainly not more than 5'3.Her breasts looked like a D. She had feminine curves underneath all her muscle. She had a runners physique. Her eyes were what caught Michael's attention. It was the most vivid leaf green he had ever seen.

'I will never submit to you! NEVER!'

The last words said in a shout seemed to whip around the clearing and generate a slight wind, which briefly sent leaves fluttering into the air. She got upright and Michael saw her weapon for the first time. She held a beautifully engraved scimitar in her left hand. The steel glittered brightly in the light from the stars. She swept forward. The sword blurring into a web of steel. He avoided the blade by moving backwards and sideways in the same motion. The sword missed him by a whisker slicing off a lock of his hair. Michael retaliated with two sharp blows; both accurate and powerful despite being placed in the dark with Michael only guessing as to his attackers position. The first hit on her left wrist disarmed her, making the girl drop the scimitar. The second hit was a powerful jab on the stomach. He felt a pang of regret at her pained oof. But he pushed his advantage forward. He whipped the branch upward and sideways in a single motion striking a blow on her right cheek. He couldn't help feeling a slight pang of remorse at the bruise that formed on her cheek. He felt even worse at her reaction. She used her right hand to cover the bruise and then burst into tears. Michael had just opened his mouth to ask if she was alright when the girl yelled out again.

'Never! Never! Never! Never!'

A dust devil picked up at her words, whipping up dried leaves and dust from the forest floor. When everything settled down once more the girl had disappeared. He started to look for the fallen scimitar only to see that it too had disappeared. Michael sat down right where he had been standing, to try and figure out what had happened.He was also more than a bit winded. A movement in the trees to his right alerted him. Deciding that sticking around would be a particularly stupid decision on his part, Michael headed for the tree line once more towards the direction of the hiking trail.

...