Haven

Chapter 1

         I was running. I didn't know where, I just knew that I was running, and that I was being chased. I did not have a plan of action, I did not even have a faint idea of a plan of action except to run until I was exhausted, which was close. My legs were burning, my breath was coming in short gasps and I knew that I couldn't go much farther. It was all I could do to keep going now. I knew that I had to find a place to hide, a place to hide from them. I knew that nowhere was safe, they had dogs and heat sensors, but I at least had to try. Ahead of me, I saw a lake and dove in, hoping that this would at least throw them off. I went under and held my breath for as long as I could, hoping that when I surfaced that they would not find and capture me like they had done with my family. I could not end up like my family. 

I couldn't hold my breath any longer so I surfaced and gasped for air, and the second I did, strong hands grabbed me. I knew that it was fruitless to struggle, so I just coughed weakly, trying to dislodge the water in my throat.

"Shut up," said a voice that definitely wasn't what I was expecting. It was soft and kind, even though it had a layer of anger underneath it at the moment. "Shut up, and lie down, unless you want to get caught." I obeyed; laying flat on the small boat he had pulled me onto. As I was lying there, I noticed that it was very cold outside and that I was freezing. I began to shiver uncontrollably, rocking the boat. He climbed on top of me and covered us both with a blanket.

I don't know how long we lay there or why he laid on top of me, but his heat was nice so I just let it happen. Finally, he rolled off of me, but laid the blanket back on top of me. He sat up and grabbed some oars that I hadn't noticed earlier and started rowing. "Wait wait wait," I said, trying not to show my extreme gratefulness, "Where the heck are you taking me?"

"Somewhere safe," he replied with a grunt as he worked away at the oars. I could tell that he was not going to volunteer any more information, and I didn't really want to swim in that horrid lake again so I sat up and looked around.

I looked at the man who had rescued me, if he could be called a man; he looked hardly older than I was! He had brown hair, but it was cut very short, almost to his scalp, and very dirty. His overall appearance was very dirty. I wondered where he was taking me and if it was as filthy as him. He had a soft face that was worn to look much older that he was; I could tell he'd been through a lot. But underneath all of that, I saw fear in his beautiful green eyes. He was afraid, but he had learned that if you showed fear, you died. I was watching his tan, muscled arms, when we hit against the bank.

"Follow me," he said. He climbed out of the boat then reached for my hand, just like an old-timey gentleman. He helped me step onto the muddy bank, and then wrapped me again in the blanket. He began walking and I followed, trying to follow his steps exactly in this unfamiliar terrain. He was confident as to where he was going, but he went slowly, for me. He kept looking back to see if I was there, and always helped me when we scrambled over big rocks or dead trees. The road leveled out and he sped up to a light jog and I saw our final destination, a quaint little cottage made of logs.

He stopped at the front door and knocked, which I thought was peculiar. If it was his house, why was he knocking? Shouldn't he just open the door? I thought. Instead, the door was open by a teenage girl, probably around sixteen who had dingy was-blonde hair and a nasty scar across her face.

"Hey Frodo, who's the newbie?"

"Not sure, haven't asked her,” he replied.

I couldn't help but wonder, so I butted in, saying, "Is Frodo your real name?"

"No," he smiled, "They just call me that because I'm always travelling around."

After that statement, which left me full of questions, Frodo walked in the door, and I followed.

"Whoa whoa whoa! Didn't you tell this chick anything Frodo? She needs to be checked before she enters the Haven." It was the blonde girl again and she seemed mad. I stumbled out a bit of a weak apology and she just smiled.

"Hey, kid, it's ok. It's clearly Frodo's fault over there so I will check you myself." Seeing my look of terror, she said, "Don't worry, it doesn't hurt. Swear. Now just stay there a moment while I go grab the stuff. Seriously do not move." She hurried off and I looked around. The inside walls were all the color of sea foam, at least in this room. That was really the only thing, though. There was nothing else except for two doors, one leading outside, and one leading into Haven.

"I'm Terra, by the way," said the blonde girl when she came back, "well not really, but no one uses their real name here. It's for safety reasons." She then pointed something that looked like a gun at me and, from harsh experience; I ducked, making myself a smaller target. She pulled me up, reassuring me that it was not a shooting gun and that it wouldn't hurt me. She then proceeded to scan my entire body with the gun. When she pressed what should have been the trigger, I ducked again and she pulled me back up.

"Look kid," she said, "I'll prove that it isn't dangerous." She pointed it to herself and pulled the trigger and nothing happened but some faint beeping like it was processing something. The beeping stopped and a robotic voice said, "Scan complete. No illegal substances found." "See?" Terra smiled at me, then pointed the gun at me and pulled the trigger.

This time, instead of keeping it in one place, she moved it all around my body, top to bottom. When she apparently was finished, she pulled the gun away. It spoke again, "Scan. Complete. Illegal substance found in lower left and lower right quadrant of suspect." I shuddered afraid that I would suddenly be kicked out of here and sent to fend for myself again, when Terra said, "Don't worry, the gun thinks that shoes are 'illegal substances.' They aren't, so you're good.” What does 'good' mean? I wondered to myself. Almost as if she had read my mind, Terra said, "It means you can come into Haven!"

With that, she walked towards the door that led farther into the house, and motioned with her hand for me to follow, so I did. She stopped in front of the door, and I was afraid that I had done something wrong. Then I saw that she was typing in a code and I then wondered why Frodo hadn't had to type in a code when he went through.

"OK," said Terra, "What's your nickname?" I hadn't thought about one and had no idea. I racked my brain desperately trying to find something creative but cool. "I see that you haven't given it much thought huh? What did you think; I was just going to let you go with your real name into Haven? I don't think so. Do you want me to choose your nickname for you?" I dumbly nodded, and Terra was enveloped in deep thought, trying to come up with a nickname for me.

She smiled, and I knew that she had found something, I just didn't know what. I honestly hoped that it was a good nickname that would make me sound cool. I sat there, knowing that I should be nervous, but I found that I wasn't. The more time that I spent in this little house, the more at home I felt. Everything about the house had been comforting and just the air itself had a good smell to it. Finally, Terra opened the door and we stepped into the main room of the house.