WhiteScratch

The Stranger

I wake up to the sound of Jake's voice whispering, "What was that?". I sit up slowly and ask him "What was what?"
"I heard a weird sound. Kinda like, a low scream."
"What in the world? Do you know what made it?" 
"No. I'm currently looking in the area of which it came." as he gazes into the distance straight ahead. Then I heard it and it sounded exactly like what Jake said.
"What the heck was that?!" I say alarmed. I look at Jake who is staring at something intensely. I follow his gaze and see a dark figure in the distance just standing there. 
"Get behind me Rachel." Jake says as he takes my arm, swings me behind him and holds me there. I hug his arm as I stare at the figure completely terrified. My head starts to thump in pain but I keep that to myself because Jake has something else to worry about. 
"Whose there?!" Jake says in a booming voice that echoes across the plain. The figure took a step forward after letting Jake's question float about the place. Jake takes a step back and I follow his step, still clinging on to his arm for dear life. 
"Just a mere stranger on a quest." The figure shouts back at us. His voice makes the thumping in my head intensify now and I close my eyes and shake my head a little to try and relive it. 
"What do you want? Why did you make that sound?" Jake yells out again. The figure takes another couple steps toward us and Jake backs up, matching his pace. 
"Back off! Tell me what you want!!" His voice sounds so authoritative and confident as he talks to this mysterious intruder but there is no answer. Just more steps forward as Jake tries to keep as much distance between us and him as possible. With every step I take, the pain I feel gets more intense but I will not say anything to Jake. I'm gonna just keep holding on to Jake and trying to fight it. 
After about a foot of the figure walking towards us and us backing up, he finally says in a louder voice, "I don't want anything from you Jake."
'How do you know my name?" Jake says alarmed. I start to tremble which he can clearly feel because he looks back into my eyes and tells me that we will be ok.
"That's not important dear boy." He takes another careful step toward us and as soon as his foot is on the ground, the pain explodes in my head sending me to the ground, screaming, with my hands on my head. Jake's eyes fill with horror and he falls to the ground with me.
"RACHEL! RACHEL!" Jake repeats before standing back up and shouting at the top of his lungs to the figure with an anger I've never seen from him.
"WHAT DID YOU DO?! STOP IT!" I can hear him say. Through my blurred vision, I can see the figure smile and slowly pick up his foot from the ground. As soon as its up, most of the pain leaves and I let my head go out of relief, breathing heavily. Jake drops to the ground once again, looming over me. I try to sit up on one arm but I'm too weak so Jake helps me, gripping me hard out of worry and adrenaline. 
In the loudest voice I can muster up, I say, "Who are you?!". The stranger takes a step back, crosses his arms, and repeats "Just a mere stranger on a quest."
"Ok fine...then what are you doing to me and how are you doing it?!" I say trying to get some kind of information out of him. This time, by means that defy all rules of space, time, and knowledge, he disappears and reappears right in front of me, blasting Jake back making him hit his head on a rock and pass out. He puts a finger under my chin and lifts my head up to make me look at his void of a face. His touch sends me back into that unbearable pain and I start to scream again, not being able to hold my head which makes the pain worse. He gazes at me quite intensely and makes a clicking sound. He then chuckles and says "Wouldn't you like to know." He lets my head fall and the pain is relieved again. I lay there, too weak to do any kind of movement. He has his back to me and turns his head to the side.
"Oh my dear Rachel, you will find out within time but by that time...it will be too late to save yourself...and Jake." With every ounce of strength and confidence I have at this moment I say, "What...are you...going to do with us?" He laughs softly and says goodbye with sign language.
"See ya later princess." and then he disappears for good leaving me in no pain at all. I stare for a second into the distance and then I remember Jake.
"Jake" I whisper to myself. I get up as quickly as I can and run toward him collapsing when I reach him. I put my hand on his head and look at his chest for any sign of breathing. When I see that he is, I take a huge sigh of relief and then almost as if I had a literal mental breakdown, I start to cry. I bal my eyes out crying until I can't anymore. I lay my head on Jake's chest as I wait for him to come back to consciousness but I am deep and long into my own slumber before he wakes up.