Soul Switchers

Chapter 1 - The Rain Clouds

The screech of metal on metal brought the children back to consciousness. The grey sky was rumbling in disapproval as they woke in the playground; so were their stomachs. The three of them hadn't eaten in days since leaving the smog filled city. Then again, it wasn't as though they were fed in the city either.

The lean, red haired girl was the first to stand. She ran her filthy dirt-covered fingers through her blood red locks and sighed at the view.

Like a blot of ink on a canvas, the city of Garnet marred the perfection of a landscape that was the countryside. As she stared down at the river, she counted seven alligators swerving from side to side, making their way along the water. The wakes that they made matched perfectly and the girl couldn't stop herself from giggling at how small and insignificant they were from such a distance. They were so much more intimidating up close. Only the King's henchmen were alligators - brutal, unforgiving and, of course, absolutely terrifying.

The disheveled-looking young boy was the next to rise from the park bench. He grinned at the girl then frowned at the rumble that his stomach made. They really did need to eat something if they were going to survive. He poked at a scratch he had gained on his arm and flinched as the scab peeled slightly off his elbow. Blood oozed from the infected wound and the boy's eyes widened at the realisation that blood came from inside of him. He had never realised this and the force of it all soon hit him; as if in sync with the red liquid seeping from his elbow, a lone tear flowed out of his hazel eye. He was such an innocent soul.

After at least ten minutes of silently crying, the boy pulled himself together and began rooting through the bins for any scraps they could salvage. He found nothing.

Without warning, a large black cloud rumbled across the silver sky, bringing with it a cataract of rainfall. The two children found shelter under a small climbing frame then remembered the third young girl. She was still lying there, completely unaware of the dangers of rain-water during the day. They hastily hauled her under the climbing frame using every ounce of strength that they could muster up from inside their souls until she was safely tucked into the corner of the small climbing frame. She was still half asleep, opening and closing her eyes gently until she heard the loud 'crack!' of thunder.

Her eyes burst open and her pale grey eyes stared straight into those of the boy's. He took in a hoarse breath then found his voice. He was able to calm her with soft coos and chatters.

She visibly relaxed and the three looked towards the sky. The raincloud was above them now, firing angry jets of water at them in an unnerving attempt to crush them to the ground. The sound was deafening, worse than a thousand timpanis being beaten with wooden logs. The rain thundered on the metal structures of the playground, gushing down the slide and flooding the trampoline pit. Screaming, the children held to each other for dear life, clutching and grabbing at every solid object they could reach. Their feeble exertions for safety were useless against the ominous cataclysm that was mere inches from them. Until it stopped.

A raucous roar resounded across the flooded hills as the children fell silent. It was a tiger.

'The prince?' The boy's soul called through his heart, 'Why is he here?'

"Good question," the Tiger replied, "however, you will find that even I  know not the answer to that." His voice was raspy as he snarled each word with a strange air of importance radiating from his wiry whiskers.

"You can hear Fal?" the boy asked.

"Yes."

"But that's illegal..."

"Unless you haven't noticed, boy, the law is becoming less and less present in our modern society... Let us just say that soul-eaving is a little hobby of mine."

The red-haired girl became enraged at this discovery and opened her mouth to speak before the prince cut her off.

"Don't try and protest, owner of Flicker!" he threatened, "I am no more guilty than you. The children of the city have all fled. Hope for the city shall be lost if the children do not return. The adults of this land have been cursed by a Raven Witch - do not shriek, do not speak, just listen to me - the souls of those over the age of seventeen have been torn from us... We cannot find where our precious souls have been taken to but I suspect that King Julian has something to do with it. He is the only adult whose soul remains within his body and he did not react when the curse took its effect on the city. I am one of the few people who realise what has happened. The curse is highly complex so you must. pay. attention:

"Curse you, owners of Theym, the ones that chose to fight over the peace,

Curse you, slavers of Theym, the ones that denied the freedom of beasts,

May you feel the misery of my people, the Theym of the lost door,

On the third sunset, the souls of the grown and unclean shall become sealed for evermore

"You must not forget this curse. Do you understand?" The children nodded. "Speak it! I must hear you say that you understand!"

The boy was the first to speak:

"I, Fabian Lynxiam, understand the curse," he closed his mouth in completion of his statement but the Prince did not look content, "and I swear to do whatever it takes to revoke it from our people."

"Good... Now for Heidi Cuniculus, who I understand refuses to speak to those she does not know... A nod shall do - thank you."

The red haired girl had a sour expression across her face. She was clearly not as eager to do what the prince wanted her to. She looked him up and down, scanning him for any sign of a lie or a reason to distrust what he was saying then nodded and said with a distasteful voice, "I'm not doing this because I want to but because it is the only way to save Heidi's family, along with Fabian's. I, Ruby Vulpes, swear to risk my neck for this curse to be revoked and make sure that the King Julian is brought to reason."

The prince smirked and began sauntering off with a noble step before he stopped.

"I'll have my ring back by the way, Heidi Cuniculus."

She stepped forward sheepishly and handed an emerald green ring to the tiger. It glittered magically, giving off a luminescent glow almost star-like. Within the emerald were strange golden particles that were the source of the glow.

The Prince snatched it from her.

Then he was gone.