The Enchanted Pulse #1

The Drowned Star

The next morning, the campus was buzzing like a disturbed beehive. Whispers and rumors spread like wildfire, and it didn’t take long before Mina and I found out what all the noise was about: someone had been found at the lake.

Not just anyone.

Zinnia Ashbrone, the popular actress—queen bee of campus—was found dead.

"Did you hear?" Mina whispered to me between classes, her voice trembling. "Zinnia's body... they pulled her from the lake this morning."

My stomach dropped. Zinnia was more than just a celebrity on campus; she was the one everyone admired. Her face was plastered on every magazine, and she practically had a cult following. Now, she was gone.

"You're joking, right?" I asked, my voice barely audible.

Mina shook her head, her face pale. "I wish I was. They say it was some kind of... accident. But I don’t buy it."

"An accident?" I echoed. "No way. Zinnia wouldn't be caught dead near that lake." I realized my words were a little too on the nose, and the chill running up my spine confirmed my worst fears. There was something darker going on, something far more sinister than an accident.

"I don’t care what they say," Mina said. "We have to find out what really happened. This feels like no coincidence, Nalani. Not after what we saw last night. The lights, the feeling you got—there’s no way Zinnia just drowned."

I bit my lip, my mind racing. "And if it’s connected to the lake…" I trailed off, thinking about my siren nature, the pull I’d felt. What if whatever was in that lake had taken her?

"What are you thinking?" Mina asked, clearly reading my worried expression.

"We need to go back to the lake. Tonight."

~

The sun dipped low on the horizon, casting long, eerie shadows across the campus as we snuck out after dark, heading straight for the lake. The closer we got, the colder the air seemed to become, a strange mist rolling in from the water.

Mina tightened her jacket around herself. "I’m starting to get why they say this place is haunted."

.

As we reached the edge of the lake, the water was calm, almost unnaturally still, reflecting the faint glow of the moon. My stomach churned. Something was off—way off.

"There," Mina pointed toward the police tape surrounding the dock. "That’s where they found her."

I stepped closer, my eyes scanning the area. The water, which had called to me the night before, was silent now, its mysterious pull replaced by a sense of dread.

"Wait," Mina whispered, crouching down near the edge of the dock. "Look."

I followed her gaze and my breath caught in my throat. There, just beneath the water’s surface, was a piece of fabric—a shimmery, silver material. It looked like part of a dress. Zinnia’s dress.

My heartbeat quickened as the realization hit me like a slap. "That’s hers."

Before Mina could respond, we heard footsteps. Heavy, deliberate footsteps. We both froze, turning around just as the unmistakable figure of Evan emerged from the trees. Of course, I thought grimly.

“What are you two doing here?” His voice was sharp, more serious than before. His usual cocky grin was gone, replaced by something more intense—almost worried.

“We could ask you the same thing,” I shot back, my heart racing for an entirely different reason now. “Why are you here, Evan? Taking a midnight stroll by the haunted lake again?”

He didn’t answer right away, his eyes narrowing as he glanced between Mina and me. "You shouldn’t be here. It’s dangerous."

Mina crossed her arms. "We’re here because we’re trying to figure out what happened to Zinnia."

He ran a hand through his hair, clearly frustrated. "You think I don’t know that? The whole campus is talking about it."

“Then you should also know,” I said, stepping forward, “that whatever happened to her wasn’t an accident.”

Evan’s gaze sharpened. “What do you mean?”

I swallowed, the words heavy on my tongue. “Last night, Mina and I saw something… something in the lake. It wasn’t just lights. There’s something in the water, Evan. Something dangerous.”

He raised an eyebrow. “And you think it killed Zinnia?”

Mina cut in, her voice low. “It makes more sense than some ridiculous drowning accident. Zinnia was a strong swimmer. She wouldn’t just... drown.”

There was a tense silence as we stared at each other, the weight of what we were saying hanging in the air.

Suddenly, Mina took a step toward the water, her curiosity getting the better of her. “Maybe we can see if—”

Before she could finish, a ripple disturbed the lake’s surface, spreading out in slow, deliberate waves.

My body tensed. “Mina, step back.”

But it was too late. The ripples grew larger, the water shifting unnaturally, as if something beneath the surface was waking up.

“Oh no,” I whispered, my siren instincts flaring. The lake was coming alive, and it wasn’t welcoming us.

Evan stepped forward, grabbing Mina’s arm and pulling her back. “We need to go. Now.”

But before we could move, the mist thickened, rolling over the lake and the surrounding trees like ghostly fingers. And then, rising from the center of the lake, we saw her.

Zinnia.

Her body—twisted, pale, lifeless—floated just beneath the water’s surface, her eyes open, staring blankly into the night. Her dress, the same one we’d seen in the water, flowed around her like she was still at some glamorous party, even though her world had ended.

“Oh my God,” Mina gasped, stumbling backward.

But it wasn’t just Zinnia’s body. As the mist swirled, I could feel something darker beneath the surface, something ancient and hungry. My siren senses screamed, warning me of a danger I couldn’t explain.

Suddenly, Zinnia’s body twitched.

“Run!” I yelled, grabbing Mina by the arm, pulling her away from the water’s edge.

Evan didn’t need to be told twice. He was already sprinting toward the trees, and we followed, the sound of the lake stirring behind us, as if something monstrous had awakened from its slumber.

We didn’t stop running until we were back at the safety of campus lights, our hearts pounding, fear clawing at our insides.

“What the hell was that?” Evan panted, his hands on his knees as he caught his breath.

“I don’t know,” I whispered, staring back toward the lake, my voice trembling, “but whatever killed Zinnia… it’s not finished.”

And in that moment, I knew this was only the beginning. The lake was calling, and it wouldn’t stop until it had what it wanted.