• pre-face chapter one: green.
    i trailed my fingers over the high swaying grass, the dew dampening my hands and the moon's pale light washing over my skin. i hummed tunelessley to myself and gazed around at the jade oasis. how beautiful, i thought. suddenly, i heard a twig crack behind me. i gasped and spun around, facing the unknown threat.
    dammit, i thought to myself. my heart was thundering in my chest. i heard the bushes behind me move then a silent breathing.i couldnt think, i couldnt breath.instinct took over, i burst into a flat out sprint, shooting across the field in a blur. i could hear the strangers fast following footsteps, i pushed my self faster.
    "wait!!!" he called, i shook my head. was he crazy?did he really belive i was going to wait?god no. not another loon.i was slowing, my legs ached and my lungs begged for a break. i groaned and let the thrill of adrenaline and life preservation push me to my limits. but it just wasnt enough. he grabbed my shirt and tackled me to the ground, pinning me there. "no!"i shrieked. i strained my neck just far enough and dugg my teeth into his hand. he let out a howl of pain and released my torso. i squirmed and writhed for freedom, jerking around while he struggled to hold me down. i wouldnt allow it. i screamed in defience and his bright blue eyes stared down at me, their depths full of emotion, i was blown away by the brightness of his eyes until he drew his hand back and shot it out across the right side of my face. i was shocked by the blow, at first there was no pain but then i felt it, pulsing waves of fire shooting across my face.black circles were filling my vision, i still struggled, feebly, weakly to hurt him,to make him let me go.he knew i was slowly going under, yet there was a sharp pain on my neck, like being pricked with a needle, my head swam. "im sorry..." he muttered. those were the last words i heard before i succumbed to the blank nothingness.

    chapter two: waiting...

    i awoke a long time later to the taste of blood in my mouth."ugh," i groaned, moving my jaw with my hand. it felt swollen.
    "carefull...dont get up too fast." a calm voice cautioned me. i peeked up through my lashes and stared in awe.
    he was beautiful. pale skinned, hair so black it looked like there were streaks of blue and purple, straight.and his eyes...a strange kind of blue that you see in the oceans of jamaica, very light blue with flecks of green and gold around the pupil. he smiled, his pale lips descending over pearl white teeth for some reason, this guy was really really familier, like an old friend. i was positive i knew him from somewhere... "wh- who are you?" i asked my voice coming out strange, hoarse. "my name is blake. and you are?" he retorted, his voice had a hint of confusion.
    "zoey," i whispered. i didnt give my last name.it didnt feel right. he smiled again and i watched his pale lips spread into a grin across his face.i half expected fangs to pop out, i mean this guy kind of reminded me of Edward Cullen. i recalled last night in a sudden burst. like lightining flashing through the sky. i scooted back and stared, wide eyed at blake. "what?" he demanded. anger was bubbling inside my chest, threatining to explode out of me. my palms tingled, i wanted to smack him.i jumped up crossed my arms."why were you following me in the forest?!"i demanded.i watched as his eyes grew larger and my fury only hightened as he feighned innocence."why did you hit me?! why did you bring me here?!where am i?!" i saw my reflection in his beautiful eyes, i looked like an enraged goddess, didnt look a thing like myself. my skin was glowing, like a light was switched on inside me. my eyes glowed, their normal green was intensified into a bright emrald that sparkled.my lips were bared over my teeth, i looked like a monster. cool i though errantly. he didnt answer me, he only stared in wonder. i screamed, my temper flaring, i spun in a circle and smashed my hand into the wall, leaving a huge crumbling hole in the cement.
    cement...
    i had just burst through concrete!ohmygoodness! wait, concrete? i inhaled and gagged. it smelt like raw sewage! "oh my god! im in the sewar!ew ew ew!!!" i squeeled, jumping around like a complete idiot. "why am i down here?answer me dammit!" blake stood up and walked past me. "follow me," he said ominisly. i flew past blake and shoved him backwards, "no freaking way." he stared at me, incredulous. "im not following you blake, you've pissed me off beyond my normal point. you drag me down here to the sewar-"i gagged "and before that you stalk me and punch me in the face!!!what the hell is wrong with you?on top of the fact that you wont answer any of my questions whatsoever!" i flicked my hand out and slapped him, straight across his face. my breath was coming in fast and hard, i scowled down at the ground. blake took a step back and watched me warily. i wasnt really focused on him, or anything for that matter, i was looking at the bodice of a goddess.what struck me as odd was that my once dark brown hair, from when i was a child, i'd recently dyed it black. well now it was a bright beautiful purple, it didnt look nautrel, but it looked awesome. it whipped around me like an invisible little mini tornado was circling me. damn, i thought, i looked like someone you dont want to mess with. a sudden terrible horrid shrieking ripped me out of my reverie. i spun around and gazed at the noise, the direction it was coming from. i turned towards blake. "who is that?"i asked him. he looked at me, his stare was frightened."its them....the creepers, we have to go!"he scurried up fast and was booking it to another area of the sewar lines."wait blake!" but he was plain out of site."aw damn."i muttered. there was more shrieking and it was getting closer.i raised my hands above my head and closed my eyes, thinking of the heat of fire, letting it wash over my limbs, my soul. if i was right, i should have been engulfed in flames. i opened my eyes and peeped down. oh wow, i was on fire! the screaming was getting more intense, more animalistic. it was then when i saw them. the creepers. they were haggard looking, missing clumps of flesh, hanging off their rotting corpses. the whites of their eyes were turned completley black,it looked like their noses had been pressed flat against their face's, only slits remained. they moved on all fours and god they were fast! as i watched them ,their heads spun and a excess goo dripped from their mouths, they bared their teeth at me, fanged blackened teeth. this time it was me to scream, and the shriek that left my lips rang loud and clear. they hissed and inched closer. "no!" i bellowed, flinging my hands out and whipping flames at their ragged bodies. the fire licked at their limbs as they screeched, i stared, wide eyed and horrified, at the mutatid humanoids. if that, they hardly seemed human. one of them, a girl i suppose, looked up at me and wailed, the cry of a dying child. her head shook, faster until it looked like it was vibrating, she screamed and one single crippled hand reached out in my direction, her lips parted and she spoke," witch! WITCH! WITCH!!!..." her voice was strangled whisper, but then, with one disgusting gurguled shriek, she died. tears rolled down my cheeks and sobbs eruppted in my throat. i bent at the waist and dry heaved, i hadnt eaten in days, sunk to the ground and cried until, finally, i passed out.

    chapter three: impossibility

    there were voices around me. i could hear them but i couldnt make sense of what they were saying, like my ears were blocked wih cotton. they whispered and hissed at one another. i struggled to open my eyes but i found that the simple task was near impossible. my mind was protecting itself, protecting me. a sudden clenching in my stomach told me to keep my mouth and my eyes shut. so i listened to it. everything around me was becoming more clear, i could make sense of the words. the voices were both male and female alike,but they spoke in a strange alien tounge, something i wasnt familier with. i struggled with my curiosity and my instinct. i didnt know if they were watching me but i suddenly had to know if they were .curiosity won me over, i peeked my eyes open, and surpressed a scream of horror. ohmygod, it was them. the creepers. they were so grotesque, peices of torn skin tearing off their bodies, their hair, or what was left of it, took the form of seaweed, or something like it. but none of that was as bad as the scent.they smelled like decomposed bodies, which they were, but with raw sewage and whatever the hell that disgusting smell was. i couldnt place it, put a name to it, it was so revoulting! i daringly turned my head an infintestimal bit, a fraction of a centimeter, peeped through my lashes and watched in shock as they feasted on a corpse, a young girl, maybe six or seven....fury bursted through my limbs, pounded in my heart and burned through my veins. i shrieked, a very impulsive and stupid thing to do. they all turned in response to my shriek, revealing their revoulting pale skin, splattered with blood. i could feel the fire of hatred burn throughout my body, "she was only a little girl!"i screamed, a shriek so loud and high pitched it hurt my own ears.they were not silent. the creepers crouched in front of me, baring there teeth and snarling at me. i stalked toward them, my breathing coming slow and hard, i growled/ screamed, my fist clenching tight. a brave but very stupid one crawled forward, trying to get to the dead girl, i threw a ball of fire at his sorry butt and let my anger and rage control my burning bodice. my hair lifted around me, i was only vaugely aware that my hair was a firey red, a blazing color that lit the room. i was more focused on the child. she was adorable, light brown hair that was twisted in a cute braide, pale colorless skin that hinted at tanning, but when she was alive.i couldnt look any lower, i didnt want to see he damage they had caused her.seeing her destroyed little corpse brought my rage to an ever higher point, these foul monsters had no boundries, they felt no remorse no pain, they didnt care...they could slaughter an infant and not think twice about it. i screeched out a terrible scream of pain and fury, my bell voice thundering over theirs and jumping three octaves. "you...you...you monsters!!!" i screeched. unfeeling and zombie like, they continued to inch toward the little girl."NO!" i bellowed, the heat within my body flinging out of me in a strang blue flame. i lifted a strained hand and stared down at the blue flames that glazed along my body. i looked up, a scowl planted on my face. i took a deep breath and put my arms straight out, palms outward, and mentally shoved the flames onto the creepers, screaming as i did. a small movement caught my attention. the young girl had shuddered. i dropped to my knee's and picked her up, holding her in my normal non-flamey-arms. she moaned feebly and turned her head toward me, sniffing at the air. "hello," i whispered. the girl flinched and her eyelids fluttered. " whats your name?" i asked,keeping my voice low. she turned her head toward the blue fire, opening her eyes and staring oddly at the burning bodies."mia..."she whispered, her small voice faint.her breathing stuttered and she closed her eyes again."mia...mia, dont close your eyes...wake up sweetie!" she smiled weakly and whispered,"she's here," then her breath stopped all together, her little body going limp in my arms. "no...no mia no, no, no, no," i uttered, bending over her body, clutching her close to me. i heard a small scrape along the floors of the damp cavern, like garbage being moved. i closed mia's eyes and flicked my fingers, willing the blue flame to my fingertips. i touched her forehead and turned away as her body burned, she was not going to be eaten by one of them. there was a rustling, again, like trash being kicked aside. "who is there?" i asked, my voice becoming stronger. blake stepped around the corner and gawked at me. there was no other word for it. "you...!"i couldnt think of a bad enough name to call him. he walked slowley over towards me, pausing to stare at the burning bodies, then focusing on me all together. "how did you do that? light on fire without getting burned?"he asked. i scoffed,"i dont know." i retorted, my voice thick with annoyance. did he really expect me to know? god im surrounded by dipsticks. blake shook his head and blinked a couple times before kneeling down next to me and watching the little girl burn. "did you know her?" he asked, his voice kind. "no, i felt really terrible about what they were doing to her, she reminded me of someone...." i whispered. blake shook his head again and stood up." its time for you to meet the others." i just stared at him uncomprehendingly."what?" i said. "the other survivors, that whole world up there---"he pointed upwards"---is being over run by these creeps. there a far and few survivors, my sister gathered what was left of humanity and hauled their butts down here. its time that they meet you." i looked at him, wide eyed and befuddled."o-okay"i choked out.
    "you can fight off three dozen creepers but meeting new people scares you to death?" he chuckled."shut up!" i whined, slapping his shoulder."ow!" he complained,"oh and by the way, that whole flamey thing you do?"he waved his hands around and fluttered his fingers."well, theres a strict no-lighting-on-fire-and-living-while-your-doing-it policy." he laughed and i joined half heartedly. the atmosphere was light and easy but inside i was crumbling. people? i had a feeling that this wasnt going to go well.

    chapter four: introductions.

    they were all shapes and sizes.certainly not what you expect when your imagining the survivors of the pre-end of the world, no indiana jones's. one woman stared happily at me, she was middle aged, mid fifties. Even though she was gray haired and slightly wrinkled, her facial exspression looked extrodinairilly alive. she looked like a twenty year old stuck in a fifty year old body.unlike the other old women in the group. there were many youngsters, too. i studied them all, looking to see if i recognized them. "there not all here," blake whispered. i sighed in relief, "who are you looking for?" he asked.
    i swallowed and glanced over at him,
    "my sister." i retorted, my voice breaking.
    the last time i had seen her she had been in school, i had waved goodbye and yelled i love you, she smiled and blew me a kiss...and that had been over three years ago.
    tears watered my eyes and i wiped them away with shaking fingers. blake just stared.
    "alot of what i say seems to catch you off guard," i noted. he shook himself lightly and wrapped a comforting arm around my shoulders. "whats her name?" he asked. i cleared my throat and ran my fingers through my hair.
    "sophia," i whispered. i had always liked that name, soft, feminine. something that didnt come on to strong or surprise you. "there all here now." blake whispered. i looked freverently at the people, looking for anyone i knew. i felt defeated as my eyes reached the last row, none of them looking familiar. a small youg girl caught my attention, she was the alot taller than sophia, the same brown curls flowing down her arms. it was the eyes that broke my haze.big brown eyes that reminded you of everything that was good in this world.
    the strength of the joy nearly knocked me to my knee's, it lifted my everfading cloud and brought sunshine in the form of my sister.
    sophia.
    "sophie!" i wailed, jerking away from blake as if he'd electrocuted me. sophia took a few steps forward and her eyes tightened, then as if something had clicked in her head, she gasped,her hands flailing up to her mouth. sophia ran to me, her long victoria's secret legs carrying her faster than i would have thought possible, i jogged to her, tears rolling down my face.
    tears of happines.i hugged her hard, pressing my face into her hair and inhaling the sweet cotton candy and apple scent that was all sophia, i heard gasps of outrage and surprise, meaningful awes and sniffles, but the voice that broke through my joy stricken haze was a strange womans inconsiderate growl. "what?" someone gasped in outrage. i turned, still hugging sophia to me, to stare at a woman who resembled blake. so this must be his sister, i thought to myself. how completley unimportant. "suzanne," sophia said softly. i looked down at her and kissed her forehead. " get away from her!" suzanne was starting towards us. i jerked upright and stood sophia behind me. " if you know whats good for you, you'll stay away from my sister.period.i dont care who you think you are, but shes mine."i growled. sophia huddled behind me and whimpered. "zoey..." she whined. i glanced down at her to find that she was terrified.
    "hell no, " suzanne uttered, her voice breaking. i turned on her, feeling the anger flow through my limbs. the sisterly instinct was strong inside me. like my intuition and heart were guiding my arms and clenching my teeth instead of me willing them to do so. "your not staying here. no." suzanne hissed, she attempted to stare me down but was outmatched by her own fear. i stood strong and glared at her, my eyes flaming with outraged intensity." you are not going to keep me from her. she's my only family dammit!" suzanne flinched back at the power in my voice. her hand snaked out and whiped across my face, fast and hard. there were gasps and chuckles from our growing audience. "go to hell. you leave. sophie stays.she is mine." my head snapped up and i launched myself at her, flying across the small space and tackling her to the ground. she yanked at my hair and flailed around, i jerked her by her hair and kneed her in the gut, i flew backwards and whiped at my mouth, blood. suzanne was panting and staring at me with a crazed look in her eye. she looked deranged, insane, but completley alive. something red and pulsing caught my eye just then, her arm. there was a small bite wound. i gasped and pointed at her bleeding arm. suzanne immediatly understood and shrieked, throwing herself at me, knocking us to the ground. she jerked her hand back and beat it across my face over and over until she lost the energy and collapsed beside me. the others moved her away from me, yelling for someone named roger. i was barley able to pay attention, i was focused on my daughters face, streaming with tears and blubbering. "sissy?" she whispered, her voice cracking. i couldnt find it in me to answer her, i couldnt find me. i had taken one hell of a beating. someone unfamilier stood behind her, hands on her shoulders. sophia did not look away. she pulled from the hands and crawled towards me. i felt my heart breaking, a splinter forming inside my body. i scrambled inside my mind, i tried to make my mouth move, form the strange gurgles to whispers on my tounge. but i lacked the ability to do so. i sent a prayer to god, please dont let me die, please, i have to stay with my sister. i cant leave her...i cant. please.i blinked a few times then counted the number of my slowing heart beats, then, my heart stopped and my eyes closed. my baby sister. no. the last thing i heard was sophia wailing for me. then i died. in front of my sister.