There Was a War

Chapter 1: Beginning of The End

My kid brother clutches onto my shirt as he sobs loudly in the entry hall of our small house. "Andrew, I wish I could stay here with you, but I can't," I say gently.

"Why not?!" He demands, his voice seething with anger.

"It's not my choice if I stay or go. I have to go fight and I want to bring back a better life for you," I explain calmly.

"If it's not your choice, then whose is it?!" He glares at me with a fire in his eyes which he got from his mom. I don't know how to explain to him that I've been drafted so I keep my answer short.

"The government; trust me, if I had a choice, I'd stay here with you. But the demons are closing in on us. I don't want you getting hurt if I can fight to prevent it." Andrew falls silent and all that can be heard is his muffled breathing as his grip on my shirt tightens. The next thing he says barely registers above a whisper.

"Promise me you won't get hurt..."

"Andrew..." I can feel my heart breaking at his quiet plea. "You know I can't do that-"

"Promise me!" The sudden force in his voice almost startles me.

"Tell you what..." I take the necklace I'm wearing off and put it around his neck. "Keep this safe for me while I'm gone and you can give it back when I come home," I press the obsidian pendant to his chest as he stares up at me with teary eyes.

"Okay..." His voice cracks slightly. "I'll give it back when you come home," he repeats quietly. I can feel his grip on me loosen slightly. A distant train whistle catches my attention and I know that I have to go soon.

"Okay, listen, Leo will be here any minute now, you know what to do and where to go if the demons attack, and I love you," I give him a quick kiss on his forehead before darting outside, just in time to hear his almost inaudible response.

"I love you too..." I can feel the tears well up in my own eyes as I cover my mouth with my hand to keep myself from sobbing loudly. The train whistle sounds again and I quickly wipe at my tears before quickly running to the train station at the edge of town.

As the train starts pulling away, I catch a glimpse of a young man with wolf ears and a tail running to catch up with the train. I notice he's about to make the jump from the platform to the car, so I get up and head to the bridge that connects two cars. He jumps, slipping a little bit until I grab his wrist and waist and pull him towards one of the cars. He sighs in relief before following me inside.

"Thanks, almost thought I wouldn't make it there for a second-" he suddenly cuts himself off. "Wait... Hope?!" He suddenly hugs me from behind, making me jump slightly. I turn around, my face mere inches away from his.

"... Markus?" It takes me a few moments to recognize my old high school friend. Before I know it, I wrap my arms around his neck, thankful to see a familiar face. "It's been forever, I haven't seen you since graduation." I snicker quietly as I see his tail wagging from over his shoulder. When we pull away from each other, we head to our seats across from each other.

"So what happened after graduation, I thought that I would have at least gotten a brief mention of you," he asks.

"Mom kicked me me out so I took Andrew with me and we stayed with our dad for a while. Once I got enough saved up to get a place to keep us both comfortable, I moved out and took legal custody over him," I explain.

"Wow, you've really changed a lot from that shy and quiet girl I knew back in high school."

"Sorry to disappoint," I say teasingly.

"I didn't mean it like that, I-I just meant-" he stutters as his face grows red in embarrassment.

"Relax, I'm just messing with you." I snicker quietly and lay back in my seat. "We've got a long ride ahead of us so I'm gonna sleep; wake me up when we get to the station," I say as my eyes drift shut.

The next thing I know, Markus is shaking me awake. "Okay, jeez, I'm awake, no need to give me whiplash," I say while chuckling.

"Heh, sorry," he responds while sheepishly scratching the back of his neck. I yawn and stretch before looking out the train window, seeing it's already sunset. We're stopped at a crowded train station, most people already in small groups, and some individuals looking more than a little confused. I offer my hand to Markus so that we don't lose each other in the crowd.

"Ready to go?" I ask before he grabs my hand and nods in response. I lead him off the train and we make our way to the edge of the station to look over the sea of people.

"Lexi said that she'd meet us here," Markus says.

"You able to see her?" I ask while looking around.

"Not yet," he responds. "One sec." Before I know it, he grabs my waist and lifts me onto his shoulders with ease. "You able to see anything?" I scan the station before my eyes land on Lexi's trademark neon red hoodie.

"Yeah- Lexi!" I cut myself off by screaming her name, my dragon voice carrying over the crowd. A few women, I'm assuming all of their names being Lexi, turn to look at me before going on about their business except for Markus' little sister who purposefully strides towards us. When Lexi reaches us, Markus lifts me off his shoulders again, setting me on the ground.

"Great, you're both here. Hope, it's been forever since I last saw you!" She turns towards me with a smile bigger than the circumstances we're currently in deserves. I smile back at her all the same before she starts talking again. "C'mon, we're all in the same unit so I'll take you to our dorms," she says excitedly before darting back into the crowd. Markus has no trouble keeping up with his energetic sister but if it weren't for Markus grabbing my hand again, it would be all I could do to not lose sight of them.

Word count: 1099