Quicksilver (Book 1)

Prologue

"So, they're dead, right?"

The girk wearing the pink pumps and the sparkly black shirt bit her lip amd looked at everyone as they solemnly congregated around photos of the kids, who lay in their coffins now, eyes closed and faces primed with make-up. Tucking a piece of her red-velvet hair behind her ear, she nervously touched the boys shoulder, pressing fingertips against the plaid cotton with the column of buttons up and down the front. It resembled what some imagine Atlantis looks like: a turbulent sea of blue and white waters with white marble jutting out. The boy beside of her didn't look up but just nodded his head slowly.

"Seems so," the girl to her left said, tilting her head as she looked down at the girl laying in her coffin. A picture of her, engraved with the name Sara Banks, sat on a table behind the black lid, tall enough so you could see over the casket's lid. The dead girl had dirty blonde hair which hung limply down and onto her breasts. Her skin was a cocoa brown and she was dressed in the best dress she had once owned when she was alive.

"Good, thats step one," a boy with wispy, blonde hair and wearing a black suit, blue tie, said, pushing his golden hair to the side. His voice and words drew no attention. They all just stood there watching the bodies as they lay in deep slumber, studying them for the very last time.

From the right end, the girl with the faded blue streaks running through her hair burst into tears. The group glanced over at her. The boy in the plaid stepped over to her, wrapping his arms around her in a consoling way. "What's wrong Payton?" he asked softly into her ear. Payton wiped her eyes on the plaid shirt and the leaned into the boy, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"I just-" Her words got stuck in her throat. "-can't do this." She burst into tears again. Through a sob, she said, "I'm leaving my mom, my sister, my home Demetri!" Payton burried her face into Demetri's shoulder. Demetri sighed and wrapped his arms around her waist, laying his chin on her head.

There was a moment of silence. Even for a funeral it was weird silence. Like when your whole world comes down, where time seems to freeze and you have no chance but to hold your breath and stand stock still. Out of the silence, the girl with the red hair slid a finger through her hair and said, "What do we do now?"

The blonde looked at her, sliding his hands down to his pockets. "Leave the city. We really need to get away from here fast."

Payton quickly poked her head oit from behind Demetri. "What about the funeral?" More tears leaked past her eyes. She really looked bad. Mascara was stained down her face, and the lipstick fulling her lips was party on Demetri's shirt. This reallu must have been tearing her up. The redhead looked down, trying not to make eye contact with her.

The golden-haired boy shook his head, sadness reflecting in his eyes. "The Hunters are already coming for us. We have no idea if they're close or not. It's time to move."

Payton, who rubbed a tear from her face, looked down. She murmurred something to him. "Please?" The bou wavered for a second. "Carson." Carson, the blonde, looked at the ground sighing.

"Okay," he gave in, "but once it's over, we bolt. Got it?" Payton looked up, smiling. She looked odd with that grin stretched wide to show her teeth, the mascara staining her cheeks, her eyes red. Carson looked up at her and sheepishly smiled back.

Time went on, and after saying their farewells to the dead ones and discussing their plans, the funeral began. The room was set up beautifully with a mournful twist. Chairs were set up in rows with an empty aisle open. The rows were ten chairs a piece and there were about seven rows. Dark bouquets were tied together with pink ribbons and hung straightly on the walls. The drapes were a solid black and the rug was slate gray. Dimly lit, the funeral home was a creepy place to see. The o ly thing that helped were the bright photos of all five of the kids.

"We are gathered here today for the horrible events that have transpired. The death of Demetri Sans, Sara Banks, Kaytlen Mullens, Payton Thyme, and Carson Richmond." The pastor standinf behind the coffins, a finger inside his black, leather bible, spoke out in a loud, clear voice and started the eulogy. "These five individuals died on the 4th of June from a tractor trailor incident. They were all riding in the same car when a devistating wreck happened which cost us the lives of our loved ones. But they're in a better place and things always happen for a reason. So, why did this happen? Maybe it's because-" The girl with the rich red hair bit her lip, wanted so badly to stand on the chair in her hightops and scream outh the truth about what really happened with the wreck. She wanted to stop the lies she had started but she knew shutting up was the wisest choice. The second best option was to just leave-which wouldn't have hurt anything considering they were already in deep water as it was-but Payton really wanted this. So she sat back and listened to the eulogy.

Time slowed down to a creep, and, finally the funeral was almost over. Payton was in tears once again along with auburn hair running down to her shoulder blades. The pall bearers marched down the aisle on que of the pastor, dressed in black suits, white ties, matching the flowers on the walls and coffins. They faced the crowd, looking stiff and blank faced. Everyone took one last look before the pastor took the stage once more.

"It's time to close the coffins and say goodbye to our loved ones. Let them rest in peace." He bowed his head for a moment and the room was cast into complete silence. Then, the pastor started closing the middle coffin.

The next couple of things happened at the same moment. A scream broke out signalling the start of a domino effect. Because of the scream, the five kids stood up. Smoke floated hazily through the air from an unknown source. They could only see enough through the haze to spot a pale hand poppinf out of the middle coffin.

"Is that-" Demetri began.

"It is," Carson replied. He pushed a lock of hair behind his ear, and gulped, his hands clenched into fists and the lights began to flicker.

"Kat, quit the illusion," the auburn haired girl said in a level voice. The redhead gulped and nodded her head. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on the dead bodies crawling one by one out of the coffins. After a moment, she opened her eyes to the last boy swinging a leg over the side of the black coffi. "Kat!"

"I'm trying, I'm trying!" The red head yelled, pressing her fingers to her temples. The dead people walking towards them flickered.

"Stop steaming Demetri," Carson said. He rushed over to an abandoned purse and dug inside of it. "I can't see!" He slipped out an iPhone and, without touching a button, a light came out from it's back. The light hit the smoke, revealing lo g strands of steel colored air surled through the light.

"Um, Car," Demetri said in a confused voice, obviously perplexed, "that isn't me."

All of a sudden the dead bodies were staggering towards them, close now. The dead, blonde one held out a hand. A stream of orange and red sparks flowed from his fingers out towards the crowd. People screamed again and the flames caught a chair on fire. Everyone bolted for the exits. It was becoming way too real for them.

"I can't control them. We have to run!" They turned around, rushing towards the door as the room caught fire. As theu ran through the night, people hopping into their cars quickly and driving off, they all knew they were close to the end: of their old lives, everythinf they use to be and the stories they were working on for so long. The funny thing about endings is they always lead to a beginning. And no matter what happens in their lives, they all knew that was one thing they can count on. They just had to know where to look for it.