“A succubus.”
“You mean one of those ancient creatures that fed on peoples life force?” It didn’t fit exactly, but there were some similarities.
“Maybe she’s an alien succubus that feeds on human flesh and plans on eating the entire school, one by one,” his voice cracked a bit. In a flash, my brain filled with a dark image of a shadow. It was tall and had glowing silver eyes. It stood still and slowly pointed a long arm toward me. I had seen the foreboding outline before.
With a dry cough, I whispered, “A demon.”
“What?” Roland asked.
Suddenly, from behind Roland’s shoulder another warning sign reared its head. A large book bound in dark leather with gold writing printed along its spine pulled my eyes toward it. The words weren’t in English and I had never seen writing like it before. Very foreign, almost alien looking. The lettering spun in vibrant yellow flashes of light. Immediately, the lines of my tattoo began to mimic the flashing perfectly. Roland looked down at my arm and froze.
“What is it?” he asked, quietly. I slowly pointed behind him, at the mysterious book. As he turned to soak in the surreal image of both the book and my arm glimmering in unison, I concentrated on Ripley inside my head.
What’s going on, Ripley?
~ Danger. ~
Danger? No kidding. What’s happening? What’s that book on the shelf?
~ Danger. ~
I heard you the first time. Why are you blinking with the same light?
~ I don’t know. I’ve never felt this way before. ~
Huh? What do you mean, this way?
~ I’m scared. ~
But you never get scared.
~ Exactly. ~
Shocked, I pulled my arm into my chest and covered the flashing light with my other arm. Roland watched me closely but said nothing.
With a large gulp of nerves down my throat, I said, “Don’t touch that book.”
Beginning to shake, Roland asked the obvious, “Why?”
“It’s dangerous.”
He held his breath for a moment before shaking his head in defiance and turned back toward the strange book.
“I want to touch it,” he said.
“No! Are you crazy? Ripley warned me not to mess with it!”
“Trust me, Luc, I know what I’m doing,” he said, drifting off. He was acting as if he was hypnotized by the thing. I grabbed his shoulder to hold him back and his muscles tightened, ready to fight back.
“Roland, please,” I begged. He paused for a second and eased his body. It only lasted for a moment though. He urgently pulled forward, reaching for the book.
“Ro!” I warned.
From behind us came a hauntingly familiar voice.
“You’re late.”
Absolutely terrified in our secret little corner, we both spun around to find Ms. Strickland standing there. Her hands fell on her waist and her eyes shined from behind her thin-rimmed glasses. A fleshy pout painted along her lips, taunted us.
“Ms. Strickland,” Roland snapped.
With a step forward, she snarled, “Mr. Saint, Mr. Ryan, you are both very tardy for your next class.”
“We’re sorry,” Roland whimpered. I could only watch her and that deviant smirk.
“What are you two doing back here?” she asked, with a pop of her neck. She instantly looked past us at the book on the shelf. It was no longer blinking with light, same with my tattoo. I rubbed the tattoo before placing my arms at my sides. She watched me like a predator stalking its prey.
“Nothing, Ms. Strickland,” Roland said, scared. She stepped up to him and placed her slender fingers along the strap of his schoolbag. Roland leaned away from her as far as he could as if he was about to be attacked.
“Good. You may leave, Mr. Saint,” she said, and twisted around toward me. Roland shot me the look of a captured fish being thrown back into the ocean. His eyes bulged with fear and relief, but he couldn’t bring himself to leave without me. Ms. Strickland placed a hand in front of me but made sure not to touch me. Her fingers hovered centimeters from chest. “Not you, Mr, Ryan. You stay right where you are.”
With a nod, I let Roland off the hook. He ran from the literary cove, knocking a few books off the shelf as he did. In my head I could hear Ripley’s warning again…
~ Danger. ~
“I better get going. Like you said, I’m late…” I tried to say as I pushed forward. Ms. Strickland stepped aside just enough for me to pass, still making sure not to touch me. I tried my best to ignore her, shielding my eyes from hers. She quickly surveyed the whole area, letting her wicked stare fall on the mysterious book last. Before I could disappear around the corner, her voice rang out.
“Mr. Ryan.”
Frozen in my tracks, I answered, “Yes.”
“After-school detention will be held in my classroom today.”
“Oh, okay,” I swallowed. My hand had instinctively curled into a fist, ready to call upon Ripley.
With a fake smile, she demanded, “Don’t be late.”
“I won’t,” I barely said.
“I hope not. You know what they say about the effects of tardiness on the average teenagers health and well-being?” she said, morbidly.
I held my breath. “No.”
“It can be…dangerous.”
Without even noticing, I took a defensive step backwards. Our eyes locked into place and the air in my lungs slowly slid through my lips, escaping their prison.
Stupidly, I stepped forward and declared, “Lucky for me I’m not an average teenager.” I have no idea why I said it. It just came out. Inside my head Ripley came alive.
~ Danger! ~
Ms. Strickland smiled, wildly. She looked exhilarated and angry at the same time. She patiently stepped up to me and lowered her head to the side of mine. Her breath felt hot on my ear and cheek. She inhaled a long swig of my scent and exhaled two paralyzing words…
“I know.”
I turned and ran out of the library without looking back but in my imagination I could see her laughing wickedly.
LEVEL 15
LEAVE A SCAR
As I walked through the door of Ms. Strickland’s classroom, my pulse raced. After Roland and I’s not-so-secret excursion, I hadn’t been able to concentrate on anything but what we saw. Thankfully, there was a silver lining to this new detention location.
“Olivia?” I said, excited. Olivia was already waiting in the empty room. We were the only two people here.
“She invited you here too, huh,” Olivia tried to smile. She was understandably scared.
“Invite isn’t quite the word. More like, ordered,” I shrugged.
“Where’s everyone else? We can’t be the only two losers that have detention today.” Olivia seemed to swell with uneasiness. She was right.
A terrible thought popped out of my mouth. “She wanted to get us alone.”
“Why?” Olivia gasped.
“I don’t know yet, but Ro and I had a weird conversation with her earlier in the day.”
“About what?” she asked.
“We were doing some research in the library when she found us and tried to intimidate both of us. Threaten us,” I said, uneasy. “Also, I think Ms. Strickland may have something to do with all the missing kids.”
Olivia scooted up next to me and asked, “What do you mean, Lucas?”
“I don’t think she’s human.”
Before Olivia could say anything a strange scratching sound came from the back of the room. We both turned our attention behind us.
“Did you hear that?” she asked, panicked. I nodded yes and took a small step forward. More scratching came, followed by a solid thud.
“It sounds like it’s coming from the cabinets at the back of the room,” I said. Olivia followed close behind me, her warm hands rested against my back. We walked up to the blue and black painted cabinets carefully. With a tingle along my arm I reached out for the handle of the cabinet’s door. The scratching stopp
ed, leaving only the sound of Olivia’s breathing. Steadily, I opened the door and braced for the worst.
“It’s a box.”
Olivia looked over my shoulder. “A box?”
A dark red box the size of a cinder block sat quietly with its lid slightly ajar. Written across it was two distinct words.
LUCAS RYAN
“It has your name on it,” Olivia gasped.
“I’ve never seen that box before, Olivia. I don’t understand…” Instinctively, I wanted to open it and slowly outstretched my arm.
“No! Are you nuts?” Olivia warned, as I placed my hand on top of the box. The scratching sound returned, only more intense this time. “Lucas, don’t.”
“Ms. Strickland is hiding something. Maybe this is it. Maybe this is her secret.”
“She put her secret in a box with your name on it? Are you crazy? This feels like a trap.”
“Maybe,” I whispered, but my hand gripped the lid tighter.
“I don’t like this…” Olivia trailed off, and took a large step backwards.
“Don’t worry, I won’t let anything hurt you,” I grinned her way. The scratching became so furious it sounded almost like the buzzing of a chainsaw. The new sound made me take an extra moment to build up the courage to open it. My tattoo awoke in a golden hue that filled the cabinet with warm light. No matter what was in there, I’d be ready. I had Ripley after all.
With a jerk, I ripped the top from the box and a swarm of flying insects exploded everywhere. Except they weren’t normal insects. They were miniature versions of the spider-like serpents that had been haunting me, only with pointy silver and red wings. Black stripes cut across their chests, claws and legs. Rows of needle-sharp teeth spit foaming hate as they surfed the air. Their menacing appearance washed over me as I pushed Olivia away. It didn’t matter though, the rush of alien bugs blanketed us with a fury of clicks and chirps. Their legs scratched at every inch of flesh they could find.
Olivia screamed loud enough to hurt my ears, “Lucas!”
She immediately ran for the door but found it wouldn’t open. It was now locked or stuck from the outside. She smashed herself against it repeatedly with no luck. The swarm tripled in numbers and splashed over me, rushing for her. With a swing of my hands I slapped away as many as I could. Their humming little bodies revved with the intensity of a thousand charging bullets, hurting my hands in the process. Olivia fell to the floor covering her face and head with her hands. Quickly, she pulled her shirt up to help block the barrage of stingers and claws.
“Help me!”
“Hang on,” I hollered, but the sound of the tiny alien chainsaws smothered my voice, easily.
“Lucas, please!” she begged, swatting at the menacing swarm. As I watched the bugs engulf Olivia my anger ignited uncontrollably. My hands balled into fists that began to shake with adrenaline. The mystical markings along my skin burst with orange and yellow fire.
“No!” I yelled, and slammed my right hand into the floor. A flash of yellow light exploded from me and announced the arrival of Ripley. Ripley spun from my arm in a ferocious attack that sent the wave of bugs flying to the corners of the classroom. Ripley’s eyes dripped liquid sparks and smoky wings of fire emerged like giant switchblade knives.
“Ripley, kill them all!” Olivia screamed, at the top of her lungs. Her voice cut through me as I admired her enthusiasm. She didn’t even give me the chance to call out the order. Ripley doubled in size and roared like a charging beast made of fury. The mass of buzzing spider-hornets moved along the ceiling with manic screams of anger. They popped and jumped in place, reaching down for us like demented yo-yos.
Before pulling Olivia to the floor with me, I ordered, “Get down!” It only took a second but it was enough time to get her to safety and let Ripley open a can of whoop-ass.
Desks flew against the walls and paper spun everywhere as Ripley powered up. With a crash against the ceiling, Ripley absorbed half of the swarm inside its body. The little demons burnt up in trails of flickering ash that sprinkled down on top of us. Their shrieks were ear-piercing but Ripley continued the rampage. With another roar, Ripley spun into a twister of flames and smoke that sucked in the oxygen at an incredible rate. Olivia and I held our breath, riding out the storm. The rest of the tiny monsters slid into the burning whirlwind, their dying screams echoed everywhere.
“Ouch!” I yelled, and slapped my hand onto my neck. The last little creature managed to sting me before being whipped into Ripley’s destructive force. When it was obliterated like the rest of the swarm, Ripley returned to me without a word. I helped Olivia back to her feet and nodded a thank you toward my magical bodyguard.
“Lucas, you’re bleeding,” Olivia said, placing a worried hand over my wound.
“I’m okay.” Ripley didn’t agree and spun around behind me. “Ripley, what’s wrong?”
~ You’ve been stung. ~
Yeah, so what?
~ Don’t move. ~
Filling with dread and a fresh wave of pain that originated from the sting, I thought, Why? What’s wrong?
~ The stinger is still in your flesh and digging deeper by the second. We don’t have much time. ~
And?
~ If that stinger reaches your spine…you die. ~
“What?” I screamed. Olivia grabbed me by the shoulders.
“What’s wrong, Lucas? What is Ripley saying?”
I tried to answer her but was overwhelmed with a freezing dizziness. Ripley spoke for me instead.
“If that stinger isn’t removed in the next ten seconds, he will die.”
Without hesitation, Olivia ripped at her hair, removing a sharp hair stick, and ordered, “Move!” Ripley slid to the side just as Olivia jammed the hairpin into my neck. She dug around with urgency, as the room began to fade to black. My legs began to give out on me and I was about to fall to the floor when the spider-hornet’s barb fell to the floor with a splatter of my blood.
“Ripley, help me,” Olivia demanded. Ripley placed a sturdy grip around my waist, locking me in place, and simultaneously smashed the barb on the floor with a flick of a smoky tail. The room began to settle again and the pain decreased.
“Olivia…” I coughed out. She smiled at me and wiped her bloodstained hands on her pants.
“Are you okay?” she asked, sweetly.
“I think so. Sheesh, those things have quite a bite.” I turned to Ripley. “How did you know about the stinger?”
“These creatures are from my dimension, my world.”
“That means Ms. Strickland’s a part of this mess,” Olivia stated. I nodded yes but was still confused. She frowned and asked, “What are we going to do?”
I grumbled, “I don’t know.”
The door handle began to shift back and forth as if it was about to open. Ripley faded into the air leaving only a faint smoke trail that quickly disappeared. Olivia and I whipped around just as the door flew open. Ms. Strickland stormed in with her eyes wide and attentive. She searched the war-torn room before focusing on Olivia and I. Her usual smirk was replaced by a serious frown.
“Ms. Weaver…Mr. Ryan…” she said, as if she was disgusted by our presence.
“It didn’t work,” I cursed at her. My words stopped her in place as if I had slapped her.
“What are you talking about, Mr. Ryan?” she smiled.
“Your trap.”
With a gentle but phony laugh, she asked, “What trap?” It filled me with a new rage. I stepped forward with Olivia safely behind me.
“The box.”
Ms. Strickland let out an even bigger laugh. “What box?”
With a shaking finger, I pointed back towards the open cabinet and yelled, “That freakin’ box!”
Ms. Strickland’s face filled with delight. “I don’t see any box.”
Olivia and I turned to find the open cabinet door and nothing else. No box, no bugs, nothing but empty space. My anger exploded everywhere.
“It was there! You di
d this! You planned this!”
“I have no idea what you are talking about,” Ms. Strickland sighed. She slowly paced the room, stopping only to glare down at Olivia, and then, me. “You have a very wild imagination, Mr. Ryan.”
I stomped past her, scooping up Olivia’s hand as I did. “You’re not going to get away with this.”
Olivia added, upset, “This isn’t over.”
With a calm but steady voice, Ms. Strickland warned, “You can count on it.” Quickly, she made her way to the back of her classroom and closed the cabinet door in a slap. Before Olivia and I could make our way out the door, Ms. Strickland dared us with one final statement.
“Interesting scar you have there, Mr. Ryan.”
My hand fell to the back of my neck. The skin was still warm and slightly raised with my newest battle wound. Enraged by her attitude I waved a middle finger her way and pulled Olivia out the door. In my head Ripley warned, sternly.
~ This is just the beginning. ~
LEVEL 16
BAD BLOOD
“Cannonball!”
Taylor’s warning rumbled over all of us like thunder as his bronzed carved body pulled into a large ball and punished the water below him. A mini tidal wave rolled along the surface of the pool as the excess water rained down on top of us. Morgan cheered with delight before quickly tumbling into the water to climb upon Taylor’s back. She kissed him on the cheek as he carried her toward the pool stairs. Roland cringed as he abruptly tried to place his now wet laptop into his backpack. A couple dozen curse words escaped his lips at the same time. Olivia removed the large orange and yellow beach towel from both our heads. She had covered us both just in time. We hardly had a drop on us.