On the outside, the sun beats down relentlessly and I close my eyes against its blinding light. I haven't seen the light of day in...how long has it been? Weeks, months, years? The first thing I truly notice is the lack of heat. It's hot, don't get me wrong but it is definitely not unbearable. This isn't one hundred and seventy degrees like they predicted with the shields down. It feels more like ninety degrees.
I cup my hands over my eyes and slowly allow them to adjust to the daylight by staring downwards. The bone-dry ground is cracked beneath my feet. The sight of it makes me suddenly thirsty. Soon, I'm able to make out some different bushes and wildflowers scattered about on the surface.
My eyes adjust enough that I am able to finally look up and see at eye level...every hair stands at attention down my arms and legs. My scalp grows cold regardless of the pressing heat. About fifty yards in front of me lay a group of people, at least seventy to a hundred in number. They all wield different weapons: spears, knifes, swords...guns. I swallow hard noticing my throat has tightened up considerably. Their eyes press into mine. The light reflects off these strangers revealing their beady red irises. They stare at me and I at them. No one moves...no one breathes.
In the matter of a split second a war cry calls out. All eyes turn toward the East, including mine as a second group of people descends upon the first. They drop down from the mountain scape above me. Each person holds a different weapon similar to the other group. Someone lands directly in front of me. I catch a glimpse of his eyes before he turns away. They startle me almost as much as the crimson eyes that were looking at me just moments before. Their color is the most vivid yellow I have ever seen. It has a look that is almost radioactive.
A gunshot rings out and I fall to the ground, curling up into a ball. I try and filter out the sounds of the war around me, but the task is impossible. Clanking of metal on metal, gunshots and screams echo off the mountainsides. There's growling and gnashing of teeth as one man falls after another.
Frightened doesn't even begin to describe how I'm feeling. I am utterly helpless as I remain curled up in my ball, with the sun beating down on my back. I feel as if I entered an alternate reality, a different world. I wish to escape but can't bring myself to move.
A body falls to the ground next to me. I feel the persons blood soak into my shirt and I look up in that moment to see yellow, pain filled eyes staring at me. They aren't just any eyes though. Gasping for breath I call her name before she passes out, "Mom!"
To Be Continued...
You don't have to wait to find out what happens next in Willow's life. Turn the page to read the first chapter of Finding ELE—book #2 in The ELE Series.