Forlorn Hope
Sheets of white thunder rolled across the horizon, crackling madly through the air. The hollow cry of birds sounded high above, fleeing the dark destruction that followed. Clouds of pitch blanketed the stars, blocking out any signs of shelter. Rain and wind tore the landscape, leaving nothing untouched. Mother nature seemed to delve into a maddened frenzy unlike any other. It was a night that none would forget for years to come. It was a night that held sway over a young boy's life.
Justin ran with what dwindling strength was left to him. The muscles in his legs burned like fire, and his arms felt heavier than lead. The wind whipped his brown hair across his vision, momentarily blinding the dim landscape ahead from view. There was little hope in the youth's eyes as he trudged forward, crossing the mud laden path nearest him. So much depended on strength he did not possess. If he failed, he would not be the one to suffer.
Not far from the boy's fierce struggle stood another figure, shrouded in the shadows of a low hanging maple. The form belonged to a young woman, slender in build and with hair the color of new morning light. Her golden locks clung to her rain drenched body, stretching midpoint past her shoulders. Her eye's glinted shade's of aqua green, mirroring the clear ocean past the cliff's edge. To any close enough to see, her eyes shone with malice and hatred for the young boy she stalked.
Justin ran until it seemed the fury of nature would tear him to the bone. He could no longer discern the path ahead, nor could he tell in which direction he traveled. He felt an unearthly need to increase his pace. Some strange sixth sense told him that all was not right. Then again, how could he not ponder the chances of danger on a night such as this?
As if his very fear were realized, a dark figure emerged from the shadows to his left. The slumped form was only a few inches shorter than himself, with a slim feminine figure that glided agilely across the dampened soil. Before he could move an inch, the dark hood fell from the intruder's face, revealing chocolate brown eyes he knew well.
"Vanessa? What are you doing here? Why are you out in this storm?" His voice sounded hoarse from strain. Had it really been that long since he had spoken?
"Justin! I've been looking for you for hours! Mother is in a state of panic! Come quickly! We must hurry home!" Vanessa cried in obvious dismay. How long had she searched for him? Her body shook from the cold. Her red tinted hair gleaming wetly, illuminated by the flash of lightning high above.
"Fine! Let's hurry and get home! Do you know the way!?"
"Yes! Follow me!"
~*~
Jessie waited silently as her pray drew nearer to the place of her hiding. It would not be long before the young fool would come into her grasp. Oh how long had it been last since she had tasted the sweet joy of death? What fool he was to travel alone in such darkness. What might he think if he knew his life would end so soon? Such a life as his was not meant to end, but what did it matter? What did it matter to one such as herself? The life of others meant nothing to her! What had others done for her!
"Death awaits those who cross my path...his life is mine!"
~*~
Justin could now see his small home, nestled amongst the hills he knew so well. As a child he had run and played with his older sister through those very groves and hillocks. The sun had always shined warmly and even in this endless darkness the comforts of home were never far. Soon he would be warm again, in the place he loved most, with the people he loved most. What dangers were left to face?
Suddenly a flash of lightning lit the sky in shades of white and green, illuminating the path ahead. It was this flash that brought his attention to the lone figure on the cliff side.
"Sister! Who is that!? Do you see that person up there!?"
"What are you talking about?" Her voice sounded hoarse and dry. "Wait, I do see someone. Who is that!?"
Without waiting for his sister's approval, Justin ran wildly towards the shadowed cliff. If this person was caught in the storm then they would surely need his aid. He could hear his sister cry out in warning but he did not heed her call. He was drawing nearer to the one he sought. He could now see that it was the figure of a woman with golden waist length hair. He called out to her but received no answer. Just as he was about to let out another shout, something metallic caught his gaze for just a moment and then everything fell into darkness.
~*~
Vanessa stared in horror struck disbelief as the limp form of her brother lay on the cold earth, blood welling from where the strange figure had stabbed him. Lightning flashed menacingly in the sky, revealing the light form of a woman standing over him, her face shrouded by a cloak as dark as the shadow's that concealed her. Her steps mirrored the grace of a cat as she moved over the bloodied form beneath her, making her way now to where Vanessa stood. A part of her cried out to run but her limbs could not; would not obey. Pain wracked her body and tears now spilled freely down her cheeks, mixing with the torrential downpour. It was a pain unlike anything she had ever felt before; a pain that tore her will and stamina to shreds. Her strength seemed to fail her just as the blond figure came into view, and with a cry of dismay, Vanessa fell to her knees.
"So you wish to die as well? Shall I end your life like I did his?" The woman's voice was vicious and cut like a blade to what was left of Vanessa's courage.
"Who are you? Why are you doing this? Why did you kill my brother!?" The words tore from her throat in a scream that matched the thunder above. A smile spread momentarily across the woman's face and was gone as quickly as it came.
"My name is Jessie, and I killed him because he possessed what I did not. You are proof of this...you may join him now."
Before Vanessa could raise a hand in defense, a flash of steal shot forth and a new pain shot through her limbs. This time the pain sent a welcome relief through her tired body. This pain was not mental, this time it was sweet sacrifice.
As her eyes began to close, she uttered her last farewell to the empty sky, just as the rains ended. "Goodbye Justin..."
The next morning word spread quickly. Two bodies had been found in the central park of the small community nestled amongst the hills. One of a young boy, no more then fifteen, the other of a young girl of eighteen. They were identified as the bodies of Justin and Vanessa MacRae. The police knew it to be another of the serial killings of the one only known as the siren. A name given to her by the simple fact that the only evidence ever found was a lock of golden hair. A woman said to have escaped the county mental institution, killed her own family, and went into hiding most matched the description of what little the police knew. No one had proved as of yet that this was true, for no one had lived long enough to reveal a name. All anyone knew was that, if it was the very same woman, then her revenge would not be satisfied until all innocence was destroyed. Her one goal had always been to rid others of happiness, for it had been denied her since childhood, when her parents had taken their own lives and attempted to take her own.
END
