Rogue - Shannon Burton (early reader books .TXT) 📗

In Flight

 

 

 

Someday, Somewhere-

 

Anywhere, Unfailingly,

 

You’ll find yourself,

 

And that, and only that,

 

Can be the happiest or bitterest hour of your life.

 

 

-Pablo Neruda

 

 

Chapter 1

I was never anything special.I was a girl with a past, present,and future just like everyone else.I didn't stand out and I wasn't anything to coo over.For a while I liked it this way.Only because I had never known what it was like to be that something more.To be told how amazing and unique I was were words I had never expected to hear.Now I was living in a world where people wanted me dead because of who I was.I was something to fight over and I was something worth protecting.

 

I had lost so many important things trying to find my place in the world.My mother, my father, my best friend, and my heart.My destiny was decided long ago and now I have no choice but to walk it.What I would give to be nobody again! Now my name strikes fear into the hearts of those who have never even met me.I am a symbol of death all because of a fate that I had never wanted.

 

Zhara.It's just a name you might say.And you are right.At one point in time it was just a name.It had no meaning or higher purpose to it.It was a girl laughing with a friend over something silly or the name of a girl falling in love for the first time.Over time it became a name that was whispered through a world called Acadia and it was a name that brought fear to those that opposed her.

 I was once just Zhara.That sweet naive girl that giggled at the silliest things.Now I was Zhara, daughter of Tildana and fierce protector of Acaidens.

Chapter 2

 
It was a long quiet ride back to Acaidia.Luca had stolen a decent looking camaro from a convenient store we had flown to after we got Mikael back.Luca complained on and on about how much he loved that camaro and soon I grew so weary of his sobbing that I fell asleep.I awoke to Mikaels light touch on my arm and my eyes fluttered open.I instantly became aware and I looked out my window to see that we were nearing the city limits.

 

When I looked in the rearview mirror I saw Mikael gazing out the window into the darkness beyond.He looked tired and agitated and that worried me.He hadn't said a word since we left Cape Falcon and I couldn't help but wonder what was causing this.I looked over to my left to see Luca with a grin on his face.Luca normally isn't a coffee drinker and for good reason.Luca had been driving for the past few hours and he had already gone through nine cups of coffee which had immediately taken a toll on him.He had become so wired up that we had to pull over to let him run off a little of the caffeine.Even now he couldn't stop grinning like a damn idiot.

 

I gave a small laugh at his expression and then turned to see how Talon was doing.He had worried lines etched into his face and I knew he was thinking about Tera.He blamed himself for leaving her in danger and there was nothing we could say to him to make him think otherwise.I turned back to the approaching town and I noticed that very few lights were on .I looked at the dashboard to see that it was only six.Why was it so dark? As we made a right onto the towns main entrance the first thing I noticed was how eerie it was.It seemed as if the town had ceased to exist in the two days we had been gone.

 

"Why in the hell is it so quiet?" I murmured to no one in particular.

 

"I have no idea but something had to have happened.This isn't normal." Mikael whispered.

 

As we passed houses we saw boards on windows and very little light came from the houses.Everything was quiet and unmoving.We passed by my old house or at least where my old house used to stand.Someone had burned it to the ground and placed a sign on the front lawn.The sign read 'Witches once lived here'.I laughed at the absurdity of it all.

 

"Hey are you alright?" Luca asked.

 

"Yea it was just a house." I responded.

 

I looked up to see Mikael staring at me with an intensity that made me want him.I looked away quickly and Talon cleared his throat.

 

"So what's the plan?" He questioned.

 

"We are gonna have to get out and walk once we get to the tree line.We know that forest well and I don't want to announce our arrival." Mikael explained.

 

We drove the rest of the way in silence.The road that Tera and I had once taken to find Talon and Damien came into view and I felt an immediate feeling of deja vu.We all got out of the car and I watched as Luca and Mikael pushed the car into the bushes.Talon stood by my side with his hands in his pockets.

 

"Lets do this." Luca howled.

 

"You are never getting coffee again." I laughed out.

 

Mikael shook his head and lead the way into the darkened forest.

 

"It will take us the rest of the night to get to Acadia so lets try and move fast." Mikael pleaded.

 

Luca, Talon, I  nodded our heads and moved at Mikaels pace.

 

Soon it became too dark in the forest and we all shifted our eyes to get a better view of where we were walking.Hours passed as we walked and I began to wonder if we were lost.A change in the air caused me to stop and I drew my sais.Hairs raised on the back of my neck and I knew that we were being watched.

 

"Stop." I whispered harshly.

 

Immediately the guysturned around and watched me.They saw that I had my sais out and instantly they took up a defensive position.

 

"We've got company." I whispered.

 

They all nodded and looked in different directions.In seconds, six Acaidens sprung from the trees with weapons in hand.We were all ready for a fight but then a thought came to my mind.

 

"Stand down." I said.

 

Mikael and Talon looked at me as if I had lost my mind but Luca had already understood what I was getting at.

 

"We are trying to get back into Acadia, right?" I asked them.

 

"Oh ok got it." Talon registered what I meant and Mikael followed.

 

I pushed my knives back into my boots and we let the guards take us as prisoners.It took another few hours of walking but we finally made it into Acadia.It was quiet as we walked across the lawn to the main house.I shifted my hearing and realized that everyone had been alerted that we were back.When we walked into the house we were lead to the dining room and I found that I was right.They had all been waiting for us.

 

The large doors were closed behind us and we were guided to a stop in front of Damien and Rina, the new leaders of Acaidia.I didn't look around at the faces around me.Instead I focused on Rinas.I was ready to rip her head from her shoulders but I was able to remain calm and collected.The room broke out in whispers and Damien tried to get control of the room.

 

"Everyone please." Damien shouted.

 

The room continued to grow in volume and I nearly laughed at the expression on Damiens face.Mikael gave a low growl and began to speak.

 

"Be quiet." Mikael said.

 

The room immediately ceased conversation and Damien gave a perplexed look.Mikael was a natural born leader even when he wasn't in control.Out of sheer habit these people bent to Mikaels will and settled down with just the sound of his voice.

 

"Now that I have your attention." Damien murmured with a frown.

 

My eyes returned back to Rinas to see a small smile on her lips.I smiled back and she glared back at me.

 

"Today we stand here because these Acaidens have broken a sacred law.They have killed fellow Acaidens. All I ask for today is justice." Damien hesitated when he looked into the glaring eyes of his brothers.

 

Rina cleared her throat and stepped forward, "They should be charged harshly.Just think they killed our very own Acaidens!"

 

Everyone in the room nodded their heads but I stood calmly.

 

"That is not how it works Rina. We allow them to say their piece and then we decide." Ada spoke up.

 

Rina looked baffled and angry.

 

"But we know that they killed our people.Why should they have a chance to justify it!" Rina growled.

 

"Because we are descendents of a fair and just species.We will not break tradition." Ada explained.

 

Throughout it all Damien looked like he didn't know what he was doing.

 

"Well then, now that that is cleared up.I will start with my part first." Mikael said taking a step forward.

 

Mikael preceded to tell about the fight that took place that night and how rogues carried him off to Cape Falcon.At first they tried to get information on certain Acaidens but he wouldn't give anyone up.Soon they resorted to torture by storing him in a room that a regular human would have died in.He began to give them unimportant bits of information and this helped him bide time until someone came to get him.It turns out he was waiting a whole lot longer then he had anticipated because the people who were suppose to be looking for him were electing a new prince.

 

"At two weeks Zhara finally came to get me.They were getting ready to behead me on a cliff and the people that saved me, stand right beside me now." Mikael finished.

 

Those in the room looked down in guilt and shame.As they should.Talon then took a step forward and told his story.He had went up to my room the night I had went to get Luca and found the dead bodies.He knew we wouldn't kill people for no apparent reason so he followed us out to Lucas' car and realized we were leaving to find Mikael.He ran back to the house and told Tera that he was going with us and he asked Rina to look out for her.He finally caught up with us at our campsite and helped save Mikael.

 

Luca told almost everything that had happened to us.He hadn't told them what or who I was and for that I was grateful.That was my story to tell when I was ready.The room grew silent and everyone looked