THE GUARDIAN

PART 1 - THE BEGINNING

The wind was howling under the moonlit streets of Spookville. Two shadows were growing on the far end of the street. 'Are you absolutely sure that we are in the 32nd street ?', asked Sue. Susan was a young girl who was in her late 16. She had long black hair that matched her pale skin color. Her voice was extremely soft and effortless. It was like a dragonfly gliding in the air. She was dressed as Elsa. Her companion was younger and shorter than her. 'I was actually going to ask you the same question sue', replied Jack.  Jack was Susan's younger brother. He was in his 14. He had slipshod hair and was dressed as Lara Croft. It was Halloween eve and these kids were out for their candy hunt. Since their neighborhood did not satisfy them with the candy they wanted they decided to go on to the next few streets. Susan, being a teen girl, totally hated the idea of dressing like a princess and walking the streets. But she had no other choice, their father left their family a long time ago. It was their mom who was raising them since then. These circumstances increased the responsibility of Susan on her little brother.

'Alright, just one more house and we blast off to home, got it? Otherwise, mom will be worried about us', said sue. Jack agreed with a sigh. It was getting darker. Suddenly the air became cold. The streetlights went out. Both of them were in the middle of the street with no sense of direction. Sue snatched jack's hand and started walking into the darkness. Jack could not keep up with his sister's speed. He stumbled and fell to the ground. When Sue stopped to help him she heard some noise in the nearby bushes.

It was first small but as seconds ticked the sounds grew more prominent. Sue now could look at some figures dangling in the bushes. She couldn't make anything out of them. But one thing was sure. Whatever they were, they were not human. 

Sue carried jack on her back and started bolting. She felt like she was walking for hours but she hasn't moved an inch. All the sceneries seemed strange. Sue was actually walking in circles even though she was keeping straight.  She stopped and listened to her surroundings. Being a member of the girl scouts has taught her never to panic under any circumstances. Sue now knew running was not an option. She looked on either side of her to see if she could find any humans nearby. There were none. All the houses in the street have also disappeared into the mist. Sue knew there is only one way now to try. She gave a firm commanding voice towards the direction where the sound came from. 'who's there?'. There was no reply.

She placed jack on the ground. She grabbed a stick from the ground and stood in a defensive position. 'Someone is playing hide and seek with us jack. We have to find who it is'. Jack with a confused face stood up and looked in all directions. 'There', Jack cried, 'something is moving among the trees'. Jack is a bright archery student in his school sports team and naturally had a very keen sight. 'Damn it is fast', he exclaimed. Sue turned to face jack and asked, 'what do you mean by "it"?'. 'Well of course it is not a human. Who do you think can run that fast on four legs? It has to be some kind of an animal. Maybe a stray dog. Let's get out of here'. Sue was really surprised that Jack saw this much in spite of the darkness. She could also see him shivering. He was afraid. Sue smiled and said, 'Hey it's ok. Yeah, it's getting late, let's go'.

Sue could feel that something is odd but if she panics she knows that Jack will get even more terrified. She was trying her utmost to stay calm in that situation. There still wasn't any way to get out of that foggy area. This short break gave both of them the time to catch their breaths. ' Let's keep moving Jack', said Sue now pulling on Jack's hand. Jack lifted his head for a second and saw his sister's face. What he did not know was that this was the last time he is going to see his sister's face in a very long time. He let down his head and was panting. Suddenly the grip on his hands felt loose. Before he could lift his head up, he felt a cool breeze scratch his neck. And when he raised his head, his sister was not there. Susan disappeared.

It took some time for Jack to realize what actually happened. He stood up and dusted his knees. 'Very funny Sue', he said now looking in all directions,' Come out already. It's getting dark we have to go home'. There was no reply. 'Sue?', his voice became shrill and soft. The truth dawned upon him slowly. Whatever that was stalking them must have been the reason for Sue's disappearance. Confused about what to do next, Jack ran headfirst into the street. The fog now seemed to have lifted. He could see the way out of the street. Jack ran and ran for hours until he ran out of breath and crash-landed on the mud facefirst. 

He lifted his head again. His eyes were welling up with tears. 'Please help me! Sue is missing. SHE'S GONEEEEE !', he screamed into the bush in front of him.

'Impressive boy', a lady's voice came from the bush he was talking to, ' Not all can sense my presence when I'm cloaked in my aura'. The lady floated out of the bush. She was as pale as the moon itself. Her voice seemed to magically echo from every corner of the street. She was dressed in a white cloak and her face was hidden by a hood. She gently landed in front of Jack and helped him up by lending him a hand. Jack wiped his face to get rid of the tears and the mud. He could now clearly see the women in front of him. 

'Who are you? Where is my sister? What was that creature in the shadows? What is happening here?' Jack kept stacking up the questions in panic. 'All your questions will be answered Jack', said the lady in a shrill voice, ' but first we have to get to someplace safe'. She smiled at Jack. Somehow Jack felt that he could trust her. He wanted someone to be on his side at this moment. So he tried to calm himself down and said,' Ok'. 

'Follow me, Jack', said the lady now turning in the opposite direction to which she was standing, 'For this is just the beginning'. Jack was puzzled but decided to follow her, for he had no other options to know what happened to his sister.