Revenge of the Shadows

Chapter One

The first thing that I noticed was the beauty.

Sunlight bathed the clearing, glistening off the dew on the rich green grass under my bare feet. A stream trickled through a shallow creek to my right, flowing out from the tall trees and along the side of the meadow to spout into a small pond. The water stretched only as wide as a standard swimming pool and was easily more shallow. Dragonflies landed on the plants that sprouted from the pond, chasing each other back and forth endlessly. The clearing was round and roughly the size of an average backyard, with ankle high grass. I stepped forward in awe, feeling the lush meadow floor and the sun soaking into my skin. A strange calmness settled in the air, relaxing my muscles and mind.

"Hello Annabelle," a deep voice spoke softly to my right, standing just inside the shadows of the trees at the edge of the clearing. I turned sideways in surprise and stepped backwards, knowing I should be afraid but not able to escape the calm that has enveloped me. The man was tall but slight, his muscles wiry. He wore a strange animal pelt wrapped around his waist, held together with tendrils of ivy or some other kind of plant. There were barely defined abs etched into his stomach and they flexed as he took slow, deliberate steps towards me. I glanced back up at his face, watching as the sun lit up his soft features. He was in his late 20's or early 30's, with a gentle smile, two dimples and brown eyes looking at me as if he knew me - or knew about me.

I released the breath I had unknowingly been holding, "who are you?" I bit my lip, feeling my stomach clench as he placed himself two feet in front of me. My head was forced to tilt up to look at him and for the first time, I paused to soak in how handsome the man truly was. His features were impossibly flawless; teeth white, nose straight, eyes glistening with charm. Okay, no more romance books, Anna, I cursed myself mentally.

"My name is Sky Leaf," he spoke, voice quiet and yet still somehow carrying itself through the clearing. My legs locked a the mention of his name, disbelief clear on my face. "I have a message for you, and you must remember it." His brown eyes darted to each side as he leaned closer, sending his fruity breath to billow down on my face. "It's time for you and your brothers to return home."

Return home? A spark of panic flickered in my chest and I stepped back uneasily. "W-what do you mean?" I stammered, "I can't go back to him!"

The man -Sky Leaf- twitched his cheek slightly, furrowing his eyebrows in puzzlement. His gaze cleared quickly and was replaced with a note of urgency. "Go back? No, no child, you aren't understanding me. You need to come home, to where you belong."

"Where I belong?" I echoed stupidly.

Sky Leaf twisted slightly towards the rest of the clearing, his arm flying out in front of him as if gesturing to the pond. On his command, the sun began to sink in the sky, drowning the expanse of blue in an orange and pink spectacle above the forest top. My eyes opened wider as night fell upon us, the stars slowly blinking into view two and three at a time, parting to let the full moon soar into the sky where the sun had been not thirty seconds before. The clearing, which had begun to be shrouded in heavy darkness, was now glowing from the reflection of the moon and stars in the pond. Fireflies floated around Sky Leaf and I, flashing their beauty as if putting on a spectacle to enhance our already magical surroundings.

I was too full of shock and awe to ask what was going on as the man turned back to look down at me. "Follow the Guardian," he pointed up at the sky, his eyes reflecting the brilliant stars. "It will lead you home." I glanced up in wonder as a singular star - the Guardian, I guessed - began to burn brighter; growing in size and strength. A shudder travelled down my spine as Sky Leaf's hand landed on my shoulder. My heart felt like it was going to burst but I kept my gaze locked on the Guardian, a deep yearning to follow sprouting inside me.