Within the various shades of the fog, four figures emerge through the lighter parts. The mist slowly fades away, leaving only the evil, otherworldly-looking men. The whole band is there except for the woman who kept her face hidden from me. My mind is preparing for battle.
The bad guys are also dressed in all black, like the Watchman beside me. Even the Scotsman's kilt is black. His shoulder-length curly black hair is tied in a man bun, and he’s carrying a two-handed claymore sword. Out of the four, he looks the fiercest.
To his far right is the giant. He is well over seven feet tall, bald, and has big gold diamond studs in both ears. Terrifying because he is as big as he is tall and the fact that his weapon of choice is a long wooden club with razor-like spikes embedded on the top does nothing to help to dispel any fear. His club is similar to my favorite weapon of choice at home, the giant’s looks more badass though, and that pisses me off. Unfortunately, he's not green nor does he appear to be very jolly.
The two men in the middle are mirror images from my nightmare. Evil smiles are pasted on their clean-shaven faces. Thriving on our discomfort, their eyes shine with joyous delight. In the hand of the twin closest to the giant is an ax with a double blade. The ax has a symbol in the middle, but I can't tell from this distance what it is. The other twin is carrying a bronze-plated sword.
The Hulk at my side looks at me almost apologetically. "I'm sorry this is happening; we hadn't anticipated any of this so soon. They've come to take you to her, but we won't let that happen."
Her? The woman from my dreams? A shiver runs down my spine, and my heart drops to my knees. I have so many questions and now is not the time for any of the answers I need.
The Cowboy smiles over at me. "Damn right we won't. You'll both be fine; we'll take it from here." He looks at Merrie-Beth and gives her a wink, making her blush.I appreciate their enthusiasm, but hell will freeze over before I sit back and nothelp with this forthcoming fight. They extend their swords out, clanking them together.
Hulk looks at Cowboy. "You ready brother?"
Cowboy gives him a lazy grin. "I was born ready, Jeremiah."
The Scotsman’s creepy smile deepens. Throwing his free hand up in the air, he drops a medium sized rock down on the ground. Lightning flashes and a loud popping noise resonates throughout the lunchroom. What the hell is happening?An eerie silence falls over the room. Jeremiah and the Cowboy don't seem surprised by any of this. Looking at each other one more time, they nod their heads, then turn their gaze to me, "For The Chosen!"
Why did they say that while looking in my direction? I've heard the saying plenty of times before. It's what we say before we go to battle, it’s in all our history books. The guys move to stand front and center blocking our view and shielding us from the chaos that quickly follows only seconds later. No one around us saw the fog or the men in the mirror, but they heard the thunder and saw the lightning coming from out of the ceiling. Kids are screaming and running themselves into utter chaos. Teachers are trying to calm the frantic students while they attempt to hide their unnerved states.
A cool breeze starts blowing from somewhere, gentle at first, but quickly becomes more forceful, making it almost impossible to stand. The temperature has dropped drastically in the room. Rubbing my arms up and down with my hands to create a little friction for warmth, I exhale, seeing my breath as it exits my mouth. What the hell is going on? It’s summertime in Georgia, we don't do the cold. Little shards of ice form in the midst of my breath. Dark magic can be the only explanation.
My heart pounds ferociously in my chest as I realize that the men are gone. Our reflections and the disarray around us are the only images that we are greeted with now. Still in disbelief, I grab Merrie-Beth's arm, and we start running. Whether that be from my body's fight or flight response, or just a pure adrenaline rush, it's anybody's guess.To hell with the Merrie-Beth in my dream that told me to stay and fight. Staying would be bat shit crazy. I’ve been trained in all the ways that count, but I don’t know how to fight against someone that’s practicing black magic. It’s not something you should face alone. Mer's been trained but not like me, and I won't allow her to get hurt. We start running towards the south exit. I hear a muttered, "shit," behind us, and Cowboy and Jeremiah move quickly to get in front of us, their weapons fully drawn.
Our run is short-lived because ten feet from the exit the Scotsman awaits. How he has managed to get out of that mirror is beyond me, but there the asshole is. Now that he is not so close to the giant, he's more muscular and taller than I thought. "They're going to block all the exits, Arabella, we need to stay in the middle and draw them to us." I don't know which one gives their unwanted opinion, but we ignore it all the same.
The Scotsman's body tenses as he spots us. He wields his Clayborn sword from side to side, then makes a move to get closer. Everything about this man is unsettling. His entire being exudes danger, and if people came with labels, the Scots would be deadly.
The Cowboy takes a lasso out of his belt making a badass firebolt shoot out of the end as it hits the floor. Catching the Scotsman by surprise he lets out a curse, as he barely escapes the wrath of the firebolt. Cowboy smiles. "I've waited a long time to kick your ass, Ramsay."
Ramsay sneers. "Son of the King and Queen of Fire, I will take great pleasure in killing you in front of your brother."
Jeremiah laughs. "Damn. That's cold."
"Real cold brother." Deen agrees with a smirk.
Ramsay takes a second sword out of his holster. "I grow weary of this small talk. Come boy, let me show you how a man fights."
Deen runs to meet Ramsay, their swords clash making sparks fly out from the sheer force of it. The Cowboy is lean and graceful, and surprisingly holds his own against the Scotsman. Back and forth they fight. The Scotsman lets out a roar when the Cowboys sword slides across his left cheek.
To hell with this, I’m done with all the gawking. Merrie-Beth grabs my arm, and we bolt. Jeremiah runs with us, rushing to get in front of us like before. Our retreat proves a pointless venture as the Giant is blocking our exit. He gives us a sneer. I'll never be the same after witnessing it. "Fee-fi-fo-fum." He chuckles a deep humorless laugh.
"Oh great, the giants got jokes." I whisper under my breath.
Merrie-Beth rolls her eyes. "Apparently. What are we going to do, Arabella? I would say run to the last exit, but I have zero doubt that those jackass twins will be there waiting for us."
I nod in agreement. "We need to split up. For whatever reason, they are here for me. I had a dream about this last night, and I can't allow them to hurt you. Staying and fighting is the only option left."
Merrie-Beth looks at me, her eyes cold as steel. I was taught that family comes first, even before duty. Family isn’t always blood, and she’s more than just a best friend to me. Meris the sister I’ve always wanted, but wasn’t given. "All of this is crazy, Arabella, but if they mess with you, then they mess with me, I'm not leaving!"
I don't like her decision but understand it completely. If the tables were turned, there wouldn't be a different outcome. "Ok, let's run back to the middle of the room like the guys said. Hopefully, that will draw them towards us, and maybe that will open the exits. With a little luck we might be able to escape before they block them again."
Jeremiah smiles up at the giant. "So, dick face, you ever heard of dentures?"
The giant smiles again, swinging his club back and forth. "How about you come and find out."
Jeremiah shrugs. "That's an invitation I just can't refuse!”
