Holding On: The Flaming Forest

C H A P T E R 1

Hoisting herself off of the wet and smelly abandoned mattress, Cassia looked across the vast alleyway and yawned. She looked inside the trash bin for any extra food she could ration, and left, a small box with half of a pizza tucked underneath the crook of her armpit. Yawning, she looked out at the busy roads, staying within the shadows, and retreating to her mattress. The mattress was hidden behind a large pile of trash cans, stacked and stuck precariously to hide the world behind; Cassia's living space. It was an okay a place; she had a broken, thrown away refrigerator that she stored her food in or on, a small cubby missing a shelf, but she could still store her art there. Her backpack, filled with spraying cans, her special pencil, clean paper, coloring pencils, and a strange, long, sharpened arrow with a real iron tip and a soft feathered end. It looked like an arrow to a bow, but she didn't have a bow, due to her laziness to find one lying around.
There was a sharp clattering behind her, and, whipping around, she peered through the trash cans and saw: it was a policeman. He was carrying a compass-deal that was pointing straight at the gap in the wall and to her. Moving slowly to the fit, bag in hand, pizza under arm, she watched the arrow follow her. Stilling her breath, Cassia turn and fled out the back way: it led to a door that entered an abandoned store. The door had been left and forgotten, and was not locked. The store used to be a restaurant, holding cheeseburgers and fries. Most of the food had been left after the 'incident'.
Picking her way through the broken tables and chairs, she worked her way to the kitchen, placing her pizza box down and heating up the remains in the microwave: it flickered on and off in short bursts so it took a little longer. Her jaw twitched when she heard the sound of soft footsteps behind her, and, daring herself to look, she knew who it was: the police man.
"Come here," he finally spoke in a rugged voice. His belly was kind of...big.
Focusing on his fat belly, Cassia answered sharply, "No. I-I need to eat."
"You will eat where we are going," the man beckoned.
The timer beeped and Cassia took the pizza out, smelling the meatlovers sausage. Closing the lid, she stepped forward. "Now I can come."
The man took out a small device, something like a taser, and aimed it at Cassia. "Hold still."
Cassia looked sharply at the man, "Y-you can't kill me." She trembled. "I'm innocent."
But before she finished, the man pulled the trigger.

X Cassia X

    I rubbed my forehead, stretching my arms. The light was so bright and white I murmured, "Heaven...?"
    A man entered the room; very young, probably my age. "No, I'm afraid you're in the Reviving Room. Most people have died when we transported them to the Tele-airport. They complained about a twisting feeling. You're the first one to appear in the Reviving Room. Anyways, I'm Tom. Thomas, actually. Pulling out a strange object, he said, "Follow me."
Getting to my feet, I had a small problem telling where the floor and the walls were and ended. My head was clouded with peace until I exited the door, and I suddenly turned to snap at Thomas, so nice and actually cute. "Where are you taking-?"
Thomas pointing the object, looking kind of like a Nerf gun, at my forehead and pulled the trigger. There was an explosion of headaches as I writhed on the floor. A strange thought echoed in my mind in the voice of silence: Confessssss.
What do I confess?
"Where did you get that arrow, Cassia?" Thomas asked gently, kneeling down beside me. "Please, I want to help you."

X Thomas X

Cassia looked me straight in the eyes, still bewildered with thoughts. I had no idea what she was thinking until she hooked her arms around my neck and kissed me. It was a long, unpleasant kind of kiss, half on the lips and half on my cheek. My arms hung there awkwardly, as she pulled me tightly. Her thoughts suddenly changed again and she opened her eyes and pushed me away roughly.
Grateful, I stood up and brushed myself off, and my face.
"I-I'm so sorry!" Cassia gasped.
    Suddenly, a brisk chuckling was heard and the cracking voice of, "Oh, shoot!"
    "Leo!" I whipped around, seeing the merry face of a handsome, kind of tall, brown-and-wavy-haired boy, exactly my age as well.
    Leo laughed, "Dude, I got it on video!"
    "What?" Although I already knew what he got on video. It was Cassia and me...in that one awkward scene.
    Taking the video camera from his hands, I quickly deleted it and shoved back towards Leo's hands.
    "Er, can you do it again?" Leo began.
    "No," me and Cassia said at the same time.
    "Thomas," Cassia said. "Thomas, where are we?"
    Hearing her speak my name like that sent shivers down my spine, but I calmly replied, "We are in Caryso. The City of All. The most amazing city in the world of Lveo. We're not on earth anymore."
    Getting up, her backpack strap falling a little off her shoulder, she said, "Good. That means I can stop running."
    "Oh, you'll be running a lot," I said coldly. "From me, Leo, or worse...Cariagoa."
    Cassia furrowed her brow in confusion, but I turned, hearing Leo say: "Hey, Cassia, do you have a taste for funny guys?"
    There was a hard smacking sound, hand on flesh, which made my mouth twitch to a small smile, but turned to frowning again. If only I could protect you, Cassia...but you don't need me. You only need yourself and your backpack...that's all you need. Not me, you don't even want, me, right...?