Dark Autumn Rose

Prologue

Samuel was running, that is all he could remember to do, RUN... His legs were burning intensely as he was swiftly sprinting in total darkness with only the brush of tree limbs to aid his direction. Catching his breath in quick and tiny shallow breaths, feeling as if his chest was going to explode if he did not get a respite soon. Samuel's eyes scanned the surroundings he could see but the towering trees protruding like creatures trying to grab ahold of him was all he could make out. "How did I get into the woods and why am I barefoot?" He had spoken to himself in a confused tone that he himself had not even recognized. His young voice seemed to echo through the forest even though he had not spoken loudly enough for anything close to hear. Walking forward through the brush swiftly he crouched down as he noticed a light that got more profound as it got nearer to where he was. Suddenly from behind him the adolescent had heard the hard crunch of fallen leaves far enough away to not be spotted but close enough to know that he had to move away from that spot.

"Oh no not again" Samuel shuddered as he spoke the cloudiness of his mind started to dissipate, and he had remembered what he had been running from. It was then that he realized that the same creature was after him again. Not even having the time to think, he leapt free of the bushes that he was hiding behind and broke into a full-on sprint towards the light. Not knowing who or what was beyond that light but not wanting to take his chances with whatever was behind him. As he ran towards the light the shadow of a building came into view, a medium-sized warehouse with broken windows and the entrance doors hallway open. The warehouse was illuminated faintly as he neared it, feeling as if it was beckoning him to come inside. He craned his neck to look one last time at the creature that was rushing after him and almost lost his footing at what he saw. The figure was taller than him but was a human or so he thought, the shadow appeared to look like a female in her mid-twenties wearing what looked to be a summer dress. Her eyes seemed to give off a hue of scarlet which terrified him. Samuel had been staring behind him for too long when he knew something wasn't right. He had felt a gnawing feeling in his chest as he spoke. "Just make it to the warehouse I can barrica...." His voice abruptly stopped as he felt a heavy blow to his abdomen taking all the air out of body and he had fell to his knees quickly. Another blow came hitting him sharply in his ribcage. Samuel coughed up blood this time as he brought his hands to his abdomen doubling over in pain and trying to catch his breath. Samuels eyes welled up with tears as they started to stream down his face slowly laying to the floor and looking towards the building, he was so close to. His entire body shook violently as he coughed feeling defeated, he waited for the creature to leap upon him, waited for its teeth to sink into his flesh. Although he did not feel the sting of teeth, he felt the grip of the woman grab ahold of him and slam him into the oak tree that resided next to him. At this point he could not move the pain was too overpowering throughout his whole body.

Through his gritted teeth and swollen eyes Samuel had noticed the woman looking down at him with a smile on her face. "I finally caught you" She spoke lightly but loud enough for him to hear. Her crimson locks flowing to the middle of her back as she moved her hair out of her face. "You can come out now Lucas, I got him" Speaking to what seemed like nobody she looked towards the tree that loomed before them. Samuel tasted blood as he brought his hand up to his mouth wiping it seemingly away. He tried to talk but all that came out was a groan while his body shook from the cold. He had wondered who she was talking to when a young man no older then eighteen stepped out from behind the oak tree. This guy had looked enchanting, almost supernatural even as he raised his arm to his silver locks of hair rubbing his head gently. "And who told you to chase him like that Mira? We could have just ambushed him when the boy went inside." Lucas grunted irritably as he walked towards them. The female scoffed as she strode towards Lucas not taking her eyes off Samuel on the forest floor. "Where's the fun in that, the chase is what gets the blood pumping" she taunted as she turned her scarlet eyes towards the older boy. "Also, it's not Mira, my name is Amara and if you keep mispronouncing it, we are going to have some problems." she grumbled at him annoyingly. There was silence for a moment as the two individuals strode towards Samuel. It had felt like only an instant when he felt the guy grab onto him and hold him up to the tree. His grip was so strong it felt as if Samuel was caught in a cage he tried to wiggle and move but to no avail as this man had incredible strength. Another blow to his stomach stopped him from wiggling as he fell limp into the man's grip. "Now if you're done struggling, we are starving" Lucas scoffed as Amara took his place and moved Samuel to a standing position facing Lucas. "You have this one he is too fragile for me; you know I like to play with my food" The girl had a steel grip on him as he faced the older boy. Samuel's eyes became hazy, but he was able to spot Lucas moving closer and raising his chin. A pair of fangs appeared as Lucas smiled at him, his blue eyes seemed to pierce through Samuel as he spoke. "What is this? Let go of me" He could barely whisper as Lucas grinned "it will all be over soon just a little pinch" Lucas descended towards the cusp of the boy's neck as Samuel froze in fear. His whole life flashing before terrified eyes. He waited for the sting of the bite to affect his already fragile body, his eyes squeezing shut tightly as he waited for the fate that would befall him.