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Published at 14th of August 2019 08:57:13 AM


Chapter 1

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Woman: "You're on Feles Isle, there's no place called Los Angeles around here."

Those words shook me to my core, I couldn't believe what she had just said. Remembering what had happened to me and my friends, I yelled out their names, hoping they could hear me.

Steven: "William! Lucas! Where are you guys!"

My yelling, however, was in vain. I could only hope that they had gotten away. I was getting nowhere and I made the woman in front of nervous, who tried to calm me down.

Woman: "Calm down! We can find your friends, but you have to tell me what happened first."

What happened? As I tried to think back and remember what happened; it began after I finished class and ran out to catch up to Lucas; who already rushed out to the front gate as soon as the bell rang. He was always energetic and kept himself clean as if he went to a Military Academy.

Lucas: "Bro, has visto a William? He should be here."

Steven: "I haven't seen him since lunch."

At the time, I didn't think much about him not being here, but now I was curious as well; because for as long as I'd remembered, William would always be at the front gate before us, waiting. We didn't think much about it then and Lucas shrugged it off by leaving a message through his phone and we made way towards my family's restaurant. I came from a family of restaurant owners and we would always go there after school to eat.

Lucas: "Man, William is going to miss out!"

Steven: "El sabe que vamos a comer at the restaurant; I'm sure he'll be there."

Lucas: "Entonces será mejor que se apure."

Spanish was the language we mostly spoke in the neighborhood and we all spoke it well with each other. As we headed to the restaurant, a girl came running towards us, crying and yelling for help.

Girl: "Help! Help! My friend is in trouble!"

She was as tall as Lucas was and gave off an innocent aura, her hair side-swept and all. Lucas, being the chivalrous knight he makes himself out to be, instantly offers to help. Although being obviously distraught, she was able to coherently lead us to a construction site.

Girl: "My friend, she's under there!"

Suddenly, I had this horrible gut feeling, as if I was charged at by a bull. I tried to figure out where it came from when Lucas rushed in and started clearing out the rubble. I jumped in as well out of good nature and knowing Lucas wouldn't be able to lift most of the rubble on his own. We dug and dug but we didn't see any sign of anyone being stuck even though the girl kept insisting there was.

Steven: "Are you sure she's here?"

Girl: "Yes I'm sure! Are you calling me a liar?!"

Quickly, I said no to avoid a confrontation and continued digging with Lucas; who was already getting tired and looked like he could collapse any second. I felt bad for him, he would help others without thinking of himself at times. He was already Lethargic and has difficulty in P.E.


Steven: "Lucas, puedes descansar. You look like you need it."

Lucas: "No, I have to find her friend."

I knew he would've refused, but it was worth the try. He would go so far for someone as to keep himself from looking weak, especially in front of a girl. Still, I admired how heroic he can be even though it's because how stubborn he is. It was a double edged sword and we would occasionally get into trouble because of it. Like this one time, where he forced himself onto the football field after being rejected because of his small stature.

Girl: "I see her! Keep digging!"

I didn't see anything but we both got a rush of adrenaline, motivating us to work harder and faster. Even Lucas was pumped after looking like he'd collapse any second. After another half hour, we were exhausted and ended up clearing out almost all of the debris in the area. Her friend was nowhere to be seen.

Lucas: "We cleared the area and your friend wasn't in there."

I was confused, and when I was about to ask if she was going to be alright, I got the same horrible gut feeling again. I felt as if I were tricked, a lamb led to the slaughterhouse. I was about to grab Lucas and make a run for it when the girl gave off a demonic smile, one that betrays her innocent appearance and sends a chill down our spines.

Girl: "Thank you, but I only need one of you now."

A shadow quickly embraced her and loomed over us. Grabbing what sanity I believed I had left, I attempted to run away with Lucas when a shadow came out of nowhere and began to suffocate me.

Lucas: "Steven!"

I felt my life slowly draining. I tried telling Lucas to make a run for it but the shadow was tightly wrapped around my neck making difficult breath. That's when William came running from the distance.

William: "Guys! Goddamnit!"

He dashed towards us and the shadow let it's grip loosen to go after William. With the strength I had left, I struggled against the shadow and picked up a piece of broken rebar and ran towards the girl. She had her arm out as if she controlled the shadows with a smile. I lifted up the rebar like a baseball bat and swung at her with all my might. I barely missed but it was enough to knock her onto the ground.

Steven: "You are not doing this to us!"

I lifted up the rebar over my head and began to make the motion of swinging it down. A sharp pain overwhelmed me and I let out a blood-curdling scream, the rebar slipping from my hands. When I looked down in horror, a shadow had stabbed me in the abdomen. Soon after, I was raised and was stabbed again, this time in the chest. I felt nothing but pain as the shadows continued stabbing me. I felt my blood rushing out of my mouth and tears streaming across my face as I attempted to call out my friends, telling them to run. Looking at them, I could see the horror of what's happening on their faces. Finally, one last shadow pierces my heart and lets me go. Darkness slowly filled my vision as I fell to the floor. I didn't feel anything but a small pulsating pain from where I had been stabbed. A light appeared in front of me. A compulsion led me to go after it, as it slowly grew bigger. The more I walked towards it, the less I felt the pulse and the bigger the light became until it finally completely filled my vision, no matter what direction I looked. I felt hot when a sudden energy jolts through me, causing me to fall off the bed I found myself in. Thinking it was a nightmare, I stood up and realized I wasn't in my own home.

Steven: "Then you came in after that."

Woman: "You were found on a beach, we had Captain Esmond and the others carry you here, where you were unconscious for a few days."

Feeling light-headed, I fall hard against the bed and bang my head on the wall. The stranger rushed towards me and held me to make sure I was okay.

Woman: "Be careful! You could get a concussion!"

I tried to apologize, but I could only do so weakly.

Steven: "I'm sorry…"

I was blushing as she held me, her hands traced across my head as her soft skin was touching mine, her black hair was soft as silk and smelled like flowers; I was entranced and for the time it lasted, came peace. I wanted to know who this woman, the one who was holding me, the one who looked and felt like a Goddess, was and why she's even helping me.

Steven: "What's your name?"

Kanna: "My name? Just call me Kanna. What's yours?"

Steven: "Steven."

Why was she here? So many questions came to mind and I wanted to know more about her; she seemed like a really nice girl.

Steven: "Why are you helping me?"

Kanna: "I was the one who found you on the beach. I don't know, it just feels like the right thing to do."

She releases her gentle grasp and sits on the floor, in front of me.

Steven: "Do you live around here?"

Kanna: "In Feles Isle? No, I might be Nekomata but I was raised in Everhand. I'm here visiting family."

Everhand and Nekomatas? I didn't know what she was talking about and it confused me. Giving it some thought, it could've been a demonym for the people around here, like how we sometimes call ourselves Angeleno in Los Angeles. Though, I'm not exactly sure.

Steven: "What are Nekomatas?"

She looked at me for a dead second, I thought I offended her, but she looked at me perplexed as if I should already know.

Kanna: "You don't know what Nekomatas are?"

Steven: "No, I'm sorry if I offended you."

After a few seconds, she started blushing as she slowly pulls her sun hat off and reveals two cat ears that both shocked and amazed me. This is amazing! They look real, too!

Kanna: "We're basically part cat if you want to think of it that way."

Steven: "Wow! That's amazing! Do you have a tail too?"

Her face turned even redder as she pulled a string from her dress and revealed her tail. Being raised around cats, I noticed that she was nervous by the way her ears were twitching and by instinct, I reached out to pet her. I continued petting her as to calm her down and soon enough, her ears were relaxing and her tail was beginning to quiver; signs that she was calming down and starting to relax if she really was part cat. It wasn't long until I realized what I was doing and instantly pulled my hand embarrassingly.

Steven: A-Ah sorry! I wasn't thinking when I was petting you!"

Kanna: "N-no it's fine, I-I should go get the Elder, he should know how to find your friends."

She left in a hurry, both of us embarrassed by what happened. I slowly stood up as I still felt light-headed and didn't want to fall back into the wall. Looking around the room, I noticed a drawer with pictures on top of them and upon closer inspection, it looked like a hand-drawn family portrait. This was far too elaborate to be a prank and was convinced that Kanna was part cat. Apart from the photos, the rest of the room looked like a traditional Japanese room, like a guest bedroom. When I noticed the lamp slightly flickering, I saw a floating gem surrounded by a flame responsible for the light. I backed away cautiously to avoid blinding myself and to protect myself as I wasn't sure what the orb would do if I touched it and I wasn't keen on finding out. After a few more minutes of looking around, I peeped through the partially opened door that led outside and couldn't believe my eyes.

Steven: "Where the hell am I?!"

It finally became clear that I woke up in a completely different world...




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