Fallen

Chapter 1

Please vote, follow, and/or comment if you enjoy reading! I hope you all enjoy, and I'd love to build up a fanbase and get as many views, votes, comments, and follows as possible. I try to update often, sometimes everyday, usually no more than every few days. Thank you for reading.

*******************

Fallen- Chapter 1

The eerie song of a hooting owl crept through the night outside of Christian's window as he slept restlessly. He tossed and turned, his mind asleep, but his body aware of his surroundings. He stood atop a peak that almost touched the clouds, smoke from a campfire rising from the dense forest beneath him. In his hands, he held a beautiful silver stone, glowing like a full moon in a cloudless, midnight sky. It was perfectly rounded and nearly a foot in length, weighing as much as ten pounds. What was this stone? He had never seen anything like it. Suddenly, the stone burst into a luminous light and Christian saw nothing but white. He opened his eyes.

Thoughts of the dream swirled through his head. Why had he felt like he had been there before? The place seemed vaguely familiar. Or maybe, it wasn't that he had been there before, but rather, he was supposed to be there. But why? Christian couldn't quite fathom the idea, but the dream had felt almost like a calling.

His thoughts were interrupted by the familiar aroma of oatmeal, sausages, and homemade bread wafting up the old wooden stairs to his bedroom. Breakfast. He dressed in an old, washed out, pre-ripped pair of jeans and an Eagle Peak High T-Shirt. He threw on an archaic pair of black work boots and made his way downstairs, his usually neatly gelled hair unruly and shaggy.

"Happy birthday, Chris!" boomed his father, his face beaming with pride. He bore a long, grey scraggly beard and a face worn from years of hard labor on the farm.

Christian stared blankly at his father for a moment, then smiled sweetly. "Hey, thanks! Another year closer to being an old man such as yourself" he replied sarcastically, hiding his feeling of forgetfulness. He had failed to remember that today was his 18th birthday because he had become so preoccupied with the dream he had had about the stone.

"Thank you. You make me feel so much younger. Luckily for you, I'm 'gonna let that slide since today's your birthday. Besides, son, with age comes wisdom."

"Oh, don't mention it, Dad. It was my pleasure. I seek nothing more than to make you feel a little younger."

"Well, Christian. Now that you've made your point, and you're done being sarcastic, I've made your favorite breakfast for your special day. I hoped to make the bread just like your mom used to, but I doubt it's as good. And please, no need to butter me up with any more of your sweet sarcasm if it isn't up to par. Just eat it."

Christian tasted the bread and savored the mouthful. "Actually, it's delicious. Honest truth. I promise."

His father grinned, feeling content. "Well, that's a first. So, have you any plans for your special day?" He nudged Christian on the arm with his elbow. "Plan on hanging out around here with your old man?"

"As much as I'd love nothing more than to spend the day with my dear father, I was actually planning on going somewhere today."

His father laughed. "Figures. I knew it would've been too good to be true. But hey, it was worth a shot, right?"

"'A' for effort, Dad." Christian turned to leave, hoping to escape his father's surely upcoming interrogation.

"Hold it, Son. You haven't told me where you're going."

"You'll think I'm neurotic and crazy if I tell you. See you tonight?"

His father's voice suddenly grew serious. "Not just yet. You're not going anywhere until I know where you'll be. We've got rules in this household, birthday or not. "