Lunar Zenith

Chapter Four

Cassandra

Burning. Alight. The forest was on fire. The smoke was stinging my eyes and the heat was singeing my lungs. I ran through the flames, branches scraping my legs, roots grabbing at my feet.

"Cassandra, little mouse."

I recognized that voice, and a moment later, the black serpent emerged from the ground, but this time, it wasn't a measly worm. Its head was larger than a horse and when it rose to full height, it blotted out the moon, casting a dark shadow on the land. The snake cackled as I turned and fled.

"Run, run," it crowed, "for I love a good chase."

The ground rumbled, and I dared chance a glance behind me. The snake slithered through the undergrowth, flattening flames and flora alike as it pursued me. Suddenly, my foot caught on a root and I tumbled to the ground, and when I peeled myself up off the ground, I was face to face with the corpse of a wolf. The wolf.

Bloodied white fur, glazed blue eyes. Dead.

I noticed a shadow growing overhead, and I whirled around. The snake hovered above me, tongue flickering, poised like a cobra. An evil gleam shone in its black eyes.

"Found you." And then, it lunged.

I woke up with a start, chest heaving up and down, sweat soaking my brow, limbs tangled in my sheets.

A dream. It was only a dream.

I pulled my legs close to my chest. "Claire was right," I said to myself. "I am crazy. I'm insane. Mother is going to have me taken away and locked up for the rest of my days." I frowned. "But on the plus side, I won't be betrothed to Mr. Murphy's son. He wouldn't want a mad woman for a wife."

Sighing, I rested my chin on my knees and directed my gaze out the window. The forest loomed at the end of the glade, encased in a fog of shadow and suspicion. I had spent my whole life as an acquaintance of the woods. It was my friend, and now it seems foreign, an alien entity harboring dangerous secrets it never thought to share. Wolves and serpents and fear, things brought to light that I had wished stayed in the dark forever.

As the trees shivered in the wind, I caught a flicker of fur amongst the underbrush, and I perked up. A wolf poked its head out the bushes, peering around the glade, before promptly returning into the thicket.

I sat motionless on my bed. "I'm not crazy," I whispered.

Throwing my sheets off, I leapt to my feet, pulled a cloak over my shoulders, and slid open my bedroom window. I crawled out of the house and took off running down the glade toward the awaiting forest. Breaking the treeline, I pulled my cloak tighter against me. The trees spoke in raspy whispers as the breeze rattled their twigs, and the confidence I had been feeling moments ago vaporized like a drop of water in the summer sun.

"Hello?" I called out into the darkness.

And, as predicted, I received no response.

I let out a sigh. "What did I think was going to happen?" I grumbled. "That I could somehow find the creature that holds all the answers to my delusions? What in the world was I—"

I turned around, intending to return to my bed, but instead, flinched with a frightened squeak. The wolf stared me down with its curious, glowing eyes. My breath hitched in my throat as the canine took a step closer.

Then another.

And another.

It was close enough to touch. I reached out with my hand, but the wolf flinched away and darted into the brush. I started out into the forest, squinting my gaze, trying to catch one last glimpse of the creature. The moment seemed like a failure, but deep down I knew I was making progress. With a little more coaxing, I believed I could convince the beast of my good intentions.