A Warning in the Dark
637 Words
The moment Xaden said “They’re watching us right now,”
the temperature seemed to drop by ten degrees.
Everyone froze.
No one breathed.
No one moved.
Even the dying streetlamp flickered like it wanted to run away too.
Arin whispered, “Okay… okay… everyone act natural. Blend in with the environment. Become a bush.”
“Arin,” Nova muttered, “there are no bushes here.”
“THEN BECOME THE WALL!”
Liora Sees Movement
Liora squinted into the shadows behind the bus stop.
Something moved.
A quick blur.
A shift of darkness.
A silhouette too tall and too still to be human.
Her breath caught.
“There’s someone there,” she whispered.
Jace grabbed her arm. “Liora, don’t go closer—”
But she did.
Slowly.
Carefully.
Flashlight trembling in her hand.
She took one more step.
“Show yourself,” she said loudly.
Nova smacked her forehead. “Why would you invite danger?!”
The Shadow Vanishes
Just as Liora lifted her flashlight—
The figure melted back into the darkness like smoke dissolving.
Gone.
Completely.
Xaden took her shoulder and pulled her back with surprising urgency.
“Don’t follow it,” he said. “That’s how they lure you.”
Liora swallowed. “So it was one of them?”
“Yes.”
A chill crawled down her spine.
A Message Appears
Suddenly Arin squeaked, “Uh… guys?”
On the ground, where the shadow had been standing moments ago, a small metal object glinted.
Jace picked it up slowly.
It was a tiny rectangular chip—like a memory card.
Nova snatched it.
“This is encrypted. Like… seriously encrypted.”
“What does it contain?” Liora asked.
Nova’s eyes scanned it.
“It’s a message.”
Everyone leaned in.
“It says…”
Nova frowned.
“… STOP DIGGING OR YOU WILL JOIN THE MISSING.”
Arin immediately turned around. “Nope. Nope. I’m done. I’m leaving. I will change schools. I will homeschool myself. I will become a goat farmer in the mountains. Goodbye—”
Jace grabbed his hoodie. “No you’re not.”
Xaden’s Suspicion
Xaden stared at the message, jaw tight.
“This wasn’t meant to scare us,” he said. “It’s a test.”
“A test for what?” Liora asked.
“To see who will run…
and who will keep searching.”
Nova squinted at him. “How do you know that?”
Xaden hesitated.
“Because that’s how they tested me.”
Silence.
Even the shadows seemed to pause.
Liora stepped closer to him. “Xaden… what did they want from you?”
He looked away.
“The same thing they want from all of us now.”
“What’s that?”
“To find the truth hidden in Crescent High…
and decide whether to destroy it or protect it.”
A Soft Cry in the Night
Suddenly—
A faint sound echoed from behind the fence near the trees.
A whimper.
A cry.
A trembling voice.
“Help… please…”
Liora’s heart jumped. “A student?”
Jace turned pale.
Arin backed away immediately. “Absolutely not—children in the dark at midnight? Nope. That is a ghost. Or a demon. Or a ghost demon.”
Nova rolled her eyes. “It’s a real person. Come on.”
They approached slowly.
Liora raised her flashlight—
And the beam caught something.
A girl.
Crouched.
Shaking.
Clothes ripped.
Eyes wide with terror.
She whispered again:
“Please… They’re coming back…”
Liora knelt. “Who? Who’s coming?”
The girl looked straight at her.
“The Shadows.”
A twig snapped behind them.
Everyone turned.
In the darkness—
Three tall figures stood watching.
Masks.
Cloaks.
Silent.
Arin whispered with absolute terror:
“WE ARE SO DEAD.”
- Writer
