DARK (Supernatural Beginnings ) Book One

Laying Low

Vincent

Both bases that Nathan and I stopped at had been compromised. His quick thinking gave us just enough time to escape. This meant we had to go off-grid. They shouldn’t have found us that quickly, at least not at this base.

I knew it wasn’t just a bug, but also a traitor. Maybe it was more than one but this was something we would ponder later once we got Tonya to safety. She was calm during everything, even when Drake teleported us to our secret grid location.

Tonya looked a little disappointed and also bewildered. The best place to lay low was always the most ordinary. She looked around the basement, bookshelves lined the walls and the only light came from the two lamps that lit automatically once the magic symbols dimmed.

Drake had already started up the stairs. Keeping Tonya’s hand entwined with mine was a comfort for us both. I knew she had caught sight of why we had to leave so abruptly. A leech wasn’t something any human could survive. The odd thing is that my instincts always sensed that Tonya wasn’t a simple human.

I couldn’t wait to dive into what she could be, but first I needed to give her a happy moment first out of this whole mess so far. We paved the steps together, the aroma of mouth-watering food hitting our senses, followed by a string of curses from another very shocked female.

"What in the holy hell! stay back!"

That must be Phoenix, I thought, as we headed straight toward the commotion in the dining room. Nathan was present and stood guard in front of Phoenix, who held a butcher's knife in her hand. Nathan couldn’t stop the smirk on his face even if he tried as he looked back at Drake.

"Long time no see friend."

" Right back at ya Nate," Drake replied while taking a seat at the table where the aroma of delicious food we smelled was displayed. He immediately started piling up his plate.

"Hey! What are you doing? Wait, Nathan, you just said friend, right? Then that means....." Phoenix finally noticed our presence. She quickly dropped the knife and made a beeline toward Tonya. I moved out of the way on time. Taking a seat at the table as well, I was starving and couldn’t deny the amazing-looking food before me.

"Go ahead, man," Nathan said as he kept an eye on Phoenix and Tonya while they hugged and cried in happiness. Neither of us could understand what the two women were mumbling to each other, but what we did know was how close their bond was.

After their emotional reunion, Phoenix leads Tonya to the table to sit and eat. A quick mind-link from Nathan let us know that all this good food was Phoenix's doing. Phoenix, in order to blow off steam, would cook or bake. They had planned to get things to go, but Drake, Nathan, and I all thought the same thing. There was no way.

They should have reached us that fast. Nathan had found a bug in Phoenix's clothes and that alone didn’t make sense. When was it planted on her? And where? Though I knew Tonya from before, Nathan and Alexis met her and her friends for the first time at the rave, right?

Nathan then hit us with an even bigger bombshell. He and Phoenix had lived before, as in lives. The strange dreams he had been having for the past year were actually memories the Cree had buried within him. I knew this to be true considering what my uncle had tried with me. As for Alexis, what memories had they buried within her?

Nathan, Drake, and I left Tonya and Phoenix in the dining hall to go over a new plan down in the basement in private. First was the status of their friend Mariana. One day was left and I believed in Alexis' ability to see her through this. We each took a seat at the only table present in the basement. A specific seat was designed and designated for one of us because it was never just an ordinary table. Placing our right hands on the tabletop, the hidden signals lit in identification and shifted us to the secret underground space deep underneath the house.

The house was in protection mode, so we didn’t have to worry about Tonya and Phoenix's safety while we were away. Screens turned on all around us in the hidden base. A clear view of the girls in the dining hall on one of the monitors as well as the outside of the property, the two bases that were attacked along with a few other places could be viewed as well as we got down to business.

Tonya

The days may not have seemed long, but I was starved. I didn’t know how much I missed Phoenix cooking until taking my first bite of the savory chicken.

"Slow down girl," Phoenix said as she handed me a glass of juice.

"I can't help it, you have no idea."

"Seriously!" Phoenix said, giving a look I knew all too well. For a moment, I forgot we were in the same exact situation. Knowing Phoenix was alright was one less worry, but Mari wasn’t as lucky as us. She had been bitten by one of those leech things and was currently fighting for her life.

Phoenix picked up on my flustered emotions and hugged me. My appetite suddenly diminished as I took in deep breaths. All our lives have changed drastically since the night of the rave. Ever since then, we have been thrust into a world of things beyond our wildest imaginations. Even time moved differently.

Phoenix released me and I realized I felt better. It was weird how her hugs always calmed me. Like the purest of warmth pouring into my soul telling me everything will be okay. I sat there mulling over things in a daze and hadn’t noticed that Phoenix had left and come back with two mugs of tea.

"Come with me." she handed me a mug and turned and walked away. I had no choice but to follow her. Smiling inside at the thought of how at home she looked here.

Phoenix led me to the room she was staying in. We sat on the bed sipping tea as she quietly let me vent and voice all my anxieties, worries, and frustrations that I felt. Something about Phoenix had changed. I paused in the middle of my venting, to really look at her. My jaw nearly hit the floor as I stared at

my best friend.

"Tonya, what's wrong?" she asked in worry, taking my hand in hers. The warmth from her hand sent sparks all through me, but not in a harmful way. I didn’t let go of her hand. This assured me that what I was seeing was real.

"What the hell was in this tea nix?" I collected myself finally to take a glance at my mug. Surprised that the tea had long been drunk by me. I couldn’t even explain what I was seeing myself, let alone explain it to Phoenix.

"It’s just regular lemon ginger tea girl, don’t make me worry."

It was way too late for that as my body suddenly began to feel like it was burning, so much so that even my vision was blurry. I felt myself falling, but I didn’t want to let go of Phoenix's hand either.

"Tonya!," Phoenix's cry was the last thing heard before everything around me became muffled and blurred.

I was surrounded by dizziness, but I needed to let Phoenix know what I had seen. I didn’t know if she heard me as I slowly began to lose consciousness.

" Your wings, Phoenix, are so beautiful ."