Fearless

- Chapter Four: Part Two: Avery -

I stood in a dark forest, not so different from the one we walked through to get to the gate. Had we been unsuccessful? I glanced around for the others, but they were nowhere in sight. The forest was still and quiet. Too still and quiet.
Overhead was an overcast sky, the moon luminescent through a layer of clouds.
I dropped my gaze, glancing again at my surroundings. It was all so strange and eerie, not even the chirp of crickets or hoot of an owl. Nothing to indicate any kind of life nearby. "Malorie? Emery?" I turned all around, studying every tree and shadow. Silence. A chill crept up my spine. I wasn't normally one to be afraid, but this... this haunting silence...
I started a slow walk, actually grateful for the crunch of leaves beneath my feet. "Cole? Jenny?" I tried again, but still there was nothing but silence in return. "Miss Gooding?" Was it all a prank they were playing on me? Were they concealed behind the trees, even now holding their hands to their mouths to stifle their laughter? Perhaps even the gate had been a joke. I had always been so serious, never one to joke myself, perhaps all this time they had been working toward the ultimate prank. But why? Somehow, even as I thought it, I didn't believe that was the case at all. Perhaps stepping through the gate had put me in a deep sleep, and this was all just a dream.
I walked on further, a little less scared knowing that it might not be real at all.
Soon I noticed the moon reflecting off something shiny up ahead, and I hurried onward until I reached it. It was a still pond, the water clear and silky in the moonlight.
I stepped closer until I could see my reflection in the water, surprisingly clear for such a dark night.
A strand of hair had slipped from my braid and I reached up to tuck it behind my ear. At that moment a breeze blew through.
"Avery." It was like a soft whisper carried on the wind. My eyes widened, and I looked up. "Who's there?"
The breeze came again, stronger than before, causing more strands of hair to slip from my braid.
Finally the breeze died down, the eerie stillness returning. I waited a few moments to see if the voice would come again, but it didn't, so I looked back into the pond. My hair was a mess, so I pulled the ponytail holder from it, allowing my hair to flow loose at my back.
"Avery."
I looked up, examining the surrounding woods. "Who---who's there?"
Again, there came no answer. I took a few steps back, away from the water that now seemed haunting.
What was this place? Who was whispering my name?
A shiver coursed through my body, and I suddenly felt chilled.
These feelings... this fear... it wasn't like me.
I was about to turn away from the pond when I noticed something glowing and rising up out of the water. I stepped closer, squinting in the darkness. It was words, like I could create with my gift. They were flowing up out of the water and twisting and swirling all around me. "What is this..." My sentence trailed away when I noticed what the words said. Vain. Selfish. Uncaring. Stuck up.
I stepped back, bumping into a tree. "This---this isn't true!" The cruel words continued to surround me. "I'm not these things... I'm not..." Tears filled my eyes, rolling down my cheeks. "I'm not." Soon whispering joined the words, and I felt drowned in a sea of voices and words. Of insults. I pressed my eyes shut and lowered to the ground, my back against the tree. I hugged my knees to my chest. After a while the tears ceased, and slowly I opened my eyes. You're stronger than this, Avery.
I pushed away from the ground, rising to my feet. "I can fight this." I whispered, then, with my gaze onward, I pushed through the tangle of words, ignoring them. Ignoring the voices. When I reached the pond's edge I stopped, gazing into the water. I reached out my hand, my eyes falling shut. Emery, if you're anywhere near... please get this message. Words flowed from my hand, and then the ground began to shake.