Bloodthirsty: A Collection Of Scary Stories

Forests Of Madness

“The end has come.” Silva Turner repeated her mother’s last words through eyelashes clinging to tears. It been a year since it happened and she left Aweturet, and she still hadn’t gotten over it.

Her parents’ deaths had been a “mystery”, meaning something knew she knew about The Group and their plans for eternal glory - through the death of others.  The Darkening Sun had been on a constant search for her ever since she had exposed her powers four years ago. Accidentally, of course.  

Her fifteenth birthday had started amazing. She woke up to the usual Florida weather - a seventy - five degree day. Unfortunately, she was roughly shaken awake by her seventeen year old brother, Thorn. “Wake up... Or the pancakes and eggs are gone.”

Of course, Silva had expected this, and reminded herself that Thorn would always be a big pig, however many warm - moons he saw. She managed to grab a couple pancakes before Thorn wolfed them all down. She was quite surprised he was still skinny because he ate so much.

The brother and sister headed to school after breakfast. They went to a nearby School Of Magic that covered as North Quigley High School. Silva was top of her class, whereas Thorn was always staying after school for extra help or detention. Mostly detention.

She got her scores at the end of the day. She got a whopping - wait for it - A+ in Magical History, A in Mind Reading, A in Potion Making, A+ in Elemental Studies, A in Mathematics, A in Spell Casting, and an A+ in  Meditation. Thorn barely scraped by with a C in Magical History,  D in Mathematics, C+ in Potion Making, B in Sword Fighting, C- in Meditation, and a B in Language.

Since test scores were a sore subject for Thorn, they didn’t chatter away like the others. They just calmly walked home.

Ojibwe, Brinnah, Arithalia and Mesquite trotted over. They had become friends because they were outsiders - the nerd, the Afrikaan, the French girl, the faerie half - breed, and the seer.

“Cheer up.” Arithalia advised. “Smile!” Ojibwe ordered. Silva forced a tight-lipped smile. “Oi, Silva!” these words were spoken by Mesquite. “There’s something you need to see....” The faerie girl slumped forward. She wasn’t moving. Her petite form didn’t stir. They noticed a red arrow protruding from her back.

Brinnah gasped and rushed forward to Mesquite’s side.Ojibwe felt Mesquite’s pulse, and sat back on her heels. Everyone held their breath. “Dead.” She announced sadly. A deeper meaning ricocheted from her words.

“No! It can’t be!” Brinnah sobbed. “Yes. It can. Doridal has taken one from us. The giant king has come.”

“That’s not possible!” Thorn broke through the silence with his unbelieving cry. “Unless....unless we’ve got a spy.” Everyone looked around, trying to decode someone’s treachery.

Ojibwe spoke up.“We must not dwell upon those matters. There’s a bigger problem. We have a giant king to kill.”