• Chapter 1: Faster than the Lightning
    “Burr” Redmoon managed to mumble between the click-clacks of his chattering teeth. Even beside the furnace, winter’s icy breath reached him that night. But he didn’t mind this, nor did his companions, Roak and Kumie.
    Sipping pea soup, they sat cross-legged, one beside another. Redmoon didn’t particularly like pea soup, but he was glad to have it as he lifted the bowl to his face and enjoyed the warm feeling it gave his lips. Roak turned to Kumie and said, “Thank you for making the soup… It’s good…” Kumie replied only with a nod and a smile of satisfaction.
    Redmoon turned his head to look at Kumie, and then quickly turned the other way. She had long black hair that stretched down to her shoulders; it held two bangs that fell upon her face. Her eyes were a sparkling brown; they had not a single flaw. When it came to how Kumie looked, Redmoon liked her eyes the most. When ever he looked into them, he felt the beckoning of love, not that she knew that. His love for her was the only secret he held, he feared the risk she didn’t share the compelling feeling. It felt odd, sharing a house with a secret love. They didn’t share a room, all three of the cramped bedrooms held one member of the inseparable trio, as was the agreement when they had built it.
    The sound of thunder filled the air, as did the sound of hail pounding against the roof of Redmoon’s very humble abode.
    “s**t!” Roak shouted as soon as the noise rang in his ears. “Damn hail storms, third one this week!” he continued.
    Lightning proceeded to strike all around, stabbing the air with its sharp skin, bringing the echoing thunder that shook the ground. The sky seemed angry, screaming with thunder and throwing hail at the world below.
    “BOOM!” The lightning shouted, startling Roak and causing him to drop his bowl of pea soup.
    “DAMNIT!” He screamed, enraged with the loss of his dinner. There was more, of course, but Roak didn’t care. It was wasted, and Roak hated it when things were wasted. Disappointed, he picked his bowl up off of the red carpet, and poured more of the steaming pea soup into it.
    “Such a waste…” he muttered under his breath, still annoyed.
    “No matter, things like that happen, and we have plenty.” Kumie commented, trying to lift Roak’s bad mood.
    “Ya, but we’d have more if I hadn’t dropped it in the first place…” Roak said, still annoyed.
    All three bowls hit the floor as the thunder screamed louder than ever before, and as the ground shook as if it were a scared child. The lightning didn’t stop this time, and nor did the thunder. One descending after another, lightning struck in every-which direction, and not a second’s pause between them. With each thunderclap, the ground began to tremble more and more.
    “What the hell is going on?” Redmoon yelled, his voice drowned out in the thunder.
    Whoever said that lightning never struck in the same place twice was proven wrong, as the electric knives were thrown again and again at the home of Redmoon and his faithful friends. Before long, it had breached the roof.
    Redmoon looked up as lightning pierced the roof, the thunder deafening up close. One last bolt went through the sky as it flew into the house; it split like a snakes tongue and landed on both Redmoon and Kumie. Faster than the lightning had returned to the sky, they had disappeared.