The Jade Arms Chronicles Book I: The Wolf Pack

Fml.

My freshman year at StoneMill High School was great, I had an awesome gang, an amazing girlfriend, and a weapon that made the seniors jealous. Sounds great right? Well... It was... Until life decided to say "Fuck you Jack!"

It was the regional sparring finals, and it was up to my gang to win it. We had Myself, Andrew Carter, Michael McArthur, Kevin Harrison, Jarred Baltimore, Slater Camden, Haley Martin, and Jennifer Rosner. It was the last stretch of the fight, and I was the only one not knocked out. I slashed at the opposing teams last member, and that's when I heard the crack. My sword shattered and disintegrated in my hand, I was slammed into the wall and knocked out.

I woke up to my gang standing around me, telling me that I failed them, that I cost them the win. I was out of The Genesis Knights, the very gang I created. That didn't feel too good. The last week of school, I was a laughing stock. I couldn't fight, my sword was gone. I had no friends anymore. I wanted to fight the world, but what good would it be without a weapon. I'd clobber the first few then get wrecked.

Over summer break I spent all of my time looking for a new sword, I could never find one. Nothing on the markets suited my style.
One thing people hate about when they fight me is that I'm ambidextrous, but I'm dominantly left handed. It's rare that I find someone who is left handed, and when I do, I use my right hand to throw them off again.

My dad used to run a major export company, at least until he died in a plane crash two years ago. Now my bitchy step mom is sleeping around with guy after guy in hotel rooms and all I get is a note giving me the bank account info (changed it, sorry mom, but you've been cut off) the keys to everything and a letter saying custody had been given to my uncle. I get food and anything else I need delivered to the house, and the company is still run by him, so that cash well isn't going dry anytime soon.

The final bell rang for us to be dismissed, I closed my locker and headed to my bus. As normal I got the regular shouts and hollering taunts. I shrugged my jacket up so my collar covered part of my face. I pulled my phone out of my pocket to seem busy. As usual, no texts. I hadn't got one since Kevin told me to give the gangs armband back, that was before summer break. Of course, being the moron I am, I wasn't paying attention to where I was going, and walked straight into another guy. More than half a foot taller than me, he glared down at the floor where I was now sprawled on my ass. Laughter followed as I pulled myself off of the floor and rushed out to the bus loop. Lo and behold I missed my damn bus. Gotta love life right? I pulled out my phone and give my uncle Mark a call.

"Hey Uncle Mark its Jack."

"Hey bud how are you?"

"I'm good. I uh, I missed the bus by accident. Could you come take me to the house?"

"Sorry champ I can't, we just took a break for the meeting on exports to England. I wish I could."

"Oh... It's okay, I'll just walk."

"Hey, Jack I'm really sorry-"

"I said it's okay!" I snapped at him. "You can't play replacement dad 24/7 I understand. I'm fine walking."

And with that, I hung up.

Fuck it. 
I put my phone back into my pocket and started walking down the sidewalk. I decided rather than go home to an empty house, all seven extra rooms vacant and covered in dust, that I would walk instead. It never failed to astound me. My whole life became a massive shit pile within a day, and now here I am now here I am, walking alone with no exact destination, no one to rely on, and no one to walk with. I never really realized until now how awkward I had become. When I walk, my feet move out of sync with everyone around me. I guess I just have to get used to walking by myself I guess.

I keep walking toward the mall where the eight of us used to hang out after school, they wouldn't be there, I know they wouldn't, they're holding tryouts for my spot in the gang. It's pretty funny how walking two miles can take so long when you're alone. I cross three more streets before I hear a rattling down an alley. Two old cans roll out at my feet, and being the idiot I am, I walked straight into a trap. Why am I so stupid? I feel something grab at my jacket and toss me into a dumpster. I look up into the face of a snarling ghoul. Fuck.

I shout at the top of my lungs in rage and kick the monster off of me, and will for my sword to materialize.... oh wait.... it broke... Fuck. Life is just WONDERFUL! I jump out of the way as the wandering ghoul continues its onslaught of attacks. Unfortunately, to follow up on my horrible luck, the ghoul swipes at my legs, knocking me down again. The ghoul grabs my arm and tosses me into the wall. I reach for my necklace, and feel the cool, jagged metal in my hand. The only thing I have of my dad before it broke, and this is all that's left. Just a single shard of the blade. My senses are a mix of everything around me; from the breath of the ghoul, to the cold metal fragment biting at my skin as my grip tightens.

The ghoul raises its clawed arm to slash at my throat, a certain death sentence. That's when I see it. A glint of light off of metal, and half a second later, the pike of a spear is slammed into the creatures jaw. The blade is then slashed through its neck, and it falls to the ground in a heap, it's now dead body begins smoldering as it disintegrates. Before I can react, a hand is held out to help me. I take them up on the offer up, and I'm standing face to face with the same guy I plowed into only hours ago.

"You alright Jack?" He asks, smiling, spear still in hand.

"Um.... Yeah. How do you know my name?"

"Glad you're okay, and that's for me to know and you to figure out."

We start walking out of the alley in silence, but then I notice something. My pace, my strides, are in sync with his. Left, right, left. We continue down the road for two blocks before he speaks again.

"By the way, my name's Dakota. Dakota Lanister."