It Occurred To Me In A Dream...Tournament Of The Elements

Chapter 1

                                      It Occurred To Me In A Dream…Tournament of the Elements

            "It occurred to me in a dream…but I never imagined it would escape my dreams, and into reality. This is no longer reality…but a living Hell."

                         -Shayla Trenton

Chapter 1

            The world I live in just isn’t the same as it used to be. Back in 2013, I imagined the future to be overrun with flying cars and space suits…not this. Ever since the countries spiraled into bankruptcy in 2022, crimes have been occurring every week. With everyone out of business and jobless, there are no policemen to prevent crimes. My family and I have been pent up in our old house, scared to take even one step outside. The government has raised the taxes to a point where it is difficult to live in California anymore. I have mentioned moving out of this corrupt state many times to my parents, but to no avail. They always go on about how this is their home…but in my mind, it’s not my home, not anymore. My brother has always agreed on my part, wanting to move away as far as possible from here. Now we just need to convince our parents…or move out on our own, with or without them. We love our parents; don’t get me wrong, we just think life would be slightly better if we moved from here. They just can’t see that.

            No matter how hard we try…

            “Mom…we need to leave! Don’t you get it?! We can’t live here anymore, we’re slowly going under! If we left here-”

            “No…we can’t leave, we can’t. This is our home, Shay.” My mother had a distant look in her eyes, her voice low and soft. “We mustn’t.”

            I look at her, my eyebrows knitted, my eyesight becoming blurred from the tears I was holding back. “Mom…I’ll ask you again, will you leave with me and Kay to Washington?” I ask her in a hushed tone, my hands placed over hers.

            “…” She just sat there, her eyes never once looking my way.

            “Please Mom! Look at me…”

            “…” Again, she didn’t take one glance in my direction.

            “…Goodbye mom…and relay Dad that same message.” I pull away from her hand, turning slightly away from her in silence. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see her looking up at me as I walked out of the room to meet Kayden.

            I exited the room to the kitchen, meeting up with Kayden. Kay was my older brother, black hair, blue eyes. While I was stuck with my bland black hair and brown eyes, he always had the good looks. I stood four foot eleven inches, with Kay towering nine or so inches taller than yours truly. I had always been short, and I’m a junior in high school…or at least was when we could still afford school. Most of the schools have shut down however due to debt and bankruptcy. At age seventeen, it’s hard for me to know what to do at times like these. Kayden was leaning against the counter, his arms crossed while he observed our old crayon drawings, probably from when we were five.

            “Such memories…living in this house for nineteen years and now we’re just…leaving.” He heaved a sigh and turned to look at me, his blue eyes dark with sorrow.

            I move next to him, leaning my head on his arm. I tried his shoulder…but it was too high. “Yah, but it will be better when we leave…I’m sure of it.” I reassure him, locking my eyes with his and mustering up my best smile. He just chuckled.

            “You don’t have to fake a smile to make me feel better Shay. I won’t back out now, not when we’re so close to leaving this corrupt crime arena.” He grinned lifting an eyebrow at me. “Don’t want my little sister turning into a robber now.”

            I dig my elbow in his side, causing him to groan and grab his side. “Shut up. C’mon let’s go.” I make my way to the front door, hesitating as soon as I step foot in front of the door. I could hear Kay walking up behind me. “Is it really safe? For us to be outside?”

            “Don’t worry,” I look up and see a pistol dangling over my head by a finger. I turn to Kay, his smile wide. “I got connections.” He handed me a small yellow can of pepper spray for self defense and made his way around me. “Use that if I’m not around. Remember the training I taught you whenever you’re in a pinch, okay?” He rested both his hands on my shoulders, his blue eyes piercing through me.

            “Yah, I got it.” I reply and stuff the spray in my jacket pocket while Kay tucks the pistol under his shirt with the grip sticking from his loose pants. I grab the back of his shirt as he reaches for the door handle and turns it.

            He pulls open the door, his hand still gripping the pistol. He motioned for me to stay put and cautiously steps outside. It has been years since we stepped foot outside due to the crime rate. There were even reportings of assaults in peoples own property. A well known group of thugs known as the Black Sabers have even broken into high security mansions, killing the residents with no mercy.

            “Is it clear?” I whisper to him and he turns to me and gestures for me to come by him, his muscles relaxing under his shirt. I made my way over to Kay, crouching just in case. We made our way to the GMC, Kayden jamming the keys in the ignition. We made our way inside just as a red van made its way down our street. We ducked out of sight, staying as quiet as possible to stay hidden. When it passed, Kay sighed with relief and sat up.

            “Scavenger vans…” Kayden whispered in a low tone, making it hard for me to hear.

            “What vans? Are they bad?” I pry.

            “Very. Just promise me you’ll steer clear whenever you see one approaching. Stay out of sight. If they see you, they will take you, Shay.” He turns to me with a hard gaze. “Promise me.”

            “O-okay, but can you tell me why? What’s so dangerous about some vans?” I ask Kay, who is now rubbing in between his eyes in frustration.

            “Just promise me Shay! You will stay away from them!” At this point, he has me by my shoulders again with a serious look about him.

            “I promise Kay, I promise.”

            “Thank you.” Kay hugs me tightly before backing out of the driveway, still a slight seriousness shrouding his normal demeanor.