The area around us was intense, all except for the chirping sounds of birds that were hovering in the trees. As this so-called Safi and I stood gazing at one another, mid-way, hoping for one of us to make a move. I obviously had the upper edge, as I held her at gunpoint, sensing something was not right with her. She immediately smiled and cautiously approached me, daring me to pull the trigger.
"I said…Stay the FUK back!" I shouted, feeling a bit irritated by her not reacting to my threats at all. "Don't make me shoot you!"
"Oh!? Is that so? Well, go on…..Shoot me!" She replied while grinning at my reaction.
Without a care in the world, she approached me again, daring me to pull the trigger.
"Come on, Ms. Price! Pull the trigger…." She said it, as she was inches away from me.
Warm sweat was trickling down my forehead, hoping for her to back out, but there she was, not even flinching at my rhetorical threats. Just then, my body felt tense. I couldn't move, as I tried backing away, and even if I wanted to, my mind wouldn't let me. For a split second, I felt pressure in my throat, causing me to lose focus. I was sweating profusely, and I couldn't breathe, almost like a tight noose around my neck.
"What's wrong, Chloe? Cat got your tongue?" Laughing hysterically, as she took my gun away from my grasp. "I will be taking that."
She waved the gun at me like a trophy; as I stood there frozen, not being able to move at all. Surely, I was blacking out, as my lungs were slowly getting compressed, making me gasp for air. At the same time, I begin to notice something else. She wasn't alone, for a scrawny-looking young man, who was in their early 20s, approached her from behind, waving their hand upwards towards me. Realizing that this person was indeed responsible for keeping me in my place and apprehending me.
Standing there, and keeping my posture still, Safi and her minion kept their eyes on me, and what I heard next really got me on edge.
"Well, well…. You sure took your time getting here." She said as she shifted her gaze to this mysterious scrawny young man.
I was able to at least take a good look at this man, who was indeed scrawny-looking, with worn-out clothes. But, surely enough, I spotted rage in his mind as he slowly lifted me upwards by a few inches. I was trying to keep my feet on the ground, yet I couldn't since I had no leverage to stand on. As tears began to roll out of my eyes, Safi showed no sign of mercy as she continued allowing this young man to torture me even further than ever.
"Good work, friend. Please do me the favor and take care of her for me." She asked, while patting him on the shoulder
As she carefully retreated to the forest, she looked at me one last time, "Oh! By the way, Chloe….next time tried having it loaded. Don't just assume things will work out in your favor, because it won't."
She gave a low maniacal laugh as she wandered into the deepest part of the forest, leaving the young man behind to finish what he was assigned to do to me. He stood there waving his hand gesture towards me, trying to slowly suffocate me to death. I was scared, and I nearly pissed myself as my vision was slowly getting blurry. I wanted to call for help, but I couldn't.
"Someone? Or anybody? Please…..help….ME!" I said to myself mentally.
Assuming the worst to come, the rumbling sounds of its winds and the sounds of an approaching storm as it grew louder, had led the young man who was sustaining me to drop me. He was spooked and immediately ran towards the same direction where Safi disappeared to.
Finally, I was able to regain conscience and started gasping for air. My heart was pounding hard as I was in a bending position on the ground. Once things settled down for me, so too, did the mystery storm as well. What's strange about the storm was that as soon as trouble left me, it too, without a doubt went away.
Being too exhausted from having to experience for the 4th time another nearby death experience, I immediately passed out right in middle of the open forest, right next to the stream. As I slowly closed my eyes, I saw a shadow approaching me. Without a doubt, I couldn't see who it was, and sure enough this person slowly picked me up….
"I got you! You are going to be alright…." Said the mysterious stranger as he carried me in his arms. "I am taking to the E.R right now."
Obviously, I didn't want to spur anymore trouble in my way, so, I begged him to take me somewhere else, which was indeed the last of my words that were coming out of my mouth as I slowly lost conscious.
"….NO! NO! Please, no hospitals. Take me elsewhere please, anywhere but that…." I replied.
I slowly regain conscious, and studying my surroundings I noticed that it was pitch dark. And not too far from me, there stood a campfire, and lucky for me someone was there. Once on my feet, I carefully approached the stranger who was sitting near the fire place. Awkwardly enough, it was my father….William.
"Dad?" I asked as I approached him carefully, "What are you doing here?"
My dad stood there, not saying anything as he stared calmly at the fire. He looked calm, and as soon as I took a sit at one of the nearby logs, he spoke….
"Hello Chloe, it has been so long since you last spoke to me…." He replied, with a calm smile.
Wanting to say something or anything to him, he just out of nowhere begin rumbling about something he had in his mind; which didn't quite made sense at all, yet he stood there giving me another one of his boring lessons in life; even though he has been dead for years.
However, this lesson was something I didn't anticipate from him at all, but being curious I sat there quietly, and listened to his response.
"You know Chloe, the fire is slowly going out, but yet again no one here seems to care. Whether or not the fire will be here, or not…." He said with that similar calm tone as he always did when he was alive, "Yet one might digress, but sometimes is best to let the spark run out completely until it becomes nothing but ashes, and leaving us in a complete darkness."
"What are you trying to say dad?" I asked, staring at him for answers.
He finally stared at me and with sympathy in his eyes… "Chloe, I am afraid that the ending of all living beings, like this fire here are about to come to an end…."
Surely enough, everything around us started to change, as the high winds begin blowing harder around us, and just like that I heard the same rumbling sound of an approaching storm that was starting to make way towards us.
"Dad, what is going on?" I shouted, shielding my gaze and keeping my focus on dad.
"It's happening Chloe, sooner than expected…. But you can stop it." He said while placing his hand on my shoulder, "It's going to be alright Chloe…."
"GOING TO BE ALRIGHT!? DAD! Look around us the storm, is tearing everything apart, and is coming back to finish the job for good. What needs to be done dad? Please tell me, I am scared." I shot back, trying to keep calm of the issue we are dealing with.
"As I said earlier, all good things must come to an end …. however, you can prevent this alternative disaster from happening. But, you cannot do this alone Chloe…. You must go back to where it all began; you are indeed a part of a key factor of ending this catastrophic event. There is hope of bringing everyone back….. Chloe…."
"Bring everyone back? How?" looking a bit confused at his response
He gave me a smile before fading away, like a mirage. "Look towards the future…. 'Kiddo', and you will see what you have been missing all your life." He stood there padding my shoulder as he slowly began to fade away from sight. "Find them…. Find the other 4 key elements that is necessary to restore all that remained unbalanced in this world….. Find them…."
"DAD!!!! Wait! Don't leave me all alone….not you too." Begging him not to go, to which I was completely all alone. Obviously, I couldn't hold back my tears of regret and in just a matter of seconds a bright light appeared out of nowhere. The light was so bright that I wasn't able to see what was in front of me, and I could have swore that I felt someone holding on to my hand, and calling my name.
"Chloe…. Chloe…. Please wake up! Please wake up!" shouted the mysterious voice.
I awoken right there to find myself in the middle of a familiar living room, surrounding by strangers who were watching me with that worrisome look. However, one of them stood out, and looked so familiar to me, as she held my hand; crying tears of joy. It was Max….. My Max.