A Moonlit Night Saga: Episodes 1 - 4 (4 page)

“Please get up, Xander,” pleaded Emily, still
wrestling with her captures. “You have to get up!”

“Pay close attention, dear,” said Simeon,
looking back towards Emily as he picked the bloodied Xander up.
“And now… I’m going to kill your pitiful savior.”

Chapter Nine

Emily screamed in horror, as she watched the
life drain from Xander. Blow after blow from Simeon sent the little
remaining blood Xander had left, splattering all over the ground.
He continued to lash at Xander, stripping the flesh from his bones
with each vicious attack.

That’s when
it
happened. The real
Emily Johansson had awoken. The clouds turned back as they spread
out across the night sky. Thunder boomed and lightning cracked,
sending bolts of energy from the heavens down to the ground
below.

Lightning fractured the ground around the
country home, lighting up the night as it struck several of the
now-fleeing ghouls. Many of them exploded in a fiery blaze, sending
panic through their ranks as Xander’s men mowed them down in
systematic fashion.

Rage began to overcome Emily and overwhelming
pressure started to build up inside her, from parts unknown.
Feeling like she was being torn apart from the inside, Emily
screamed in agony, flailing her arms around as the two ghouls
desperately tried to contain her.

“Hold her still!” shouted Jacob, as he tried
to hold Emily in place. His scabby hands clawed into her flesh as
he tightened his grip. “You’re letting her go!”

“I’m not!” George yelled back. “You’re the
one letting her go!”

In fact, neither of them was letting go of
her. It was Emily herself that was getting stronger.

Emily’s eyes were engulfed in white swirling
energy, as the ghouls frantically turned to subdue her. She could
feel herself become stronger, faster, and more self aware with each
passing moment.

With the flick of her arms, she sent the two
ghouls hurdling down the porch steps.

Emily raised her arms, and with strength that
she never even knew she had, began to call forth power of
terrifying proportions. White streams of light started swirling all
around her arms; and with the shrieks from a thousand roaring
creatures, blazing white energy pulsed from each of her hands. The
energy swirled around her fists as the creatures started to get
louder and louder; their screams echoing throughout the country,
the sound of a thousand monsters screeching in unison.

Two monstrous dragons took form, as they
danced around in circles, heading straight for the two ghouls that
had assaulted her. They were breathtaking and majestic as they
hurdled forward with incredible speed.

The blast tore through Jacob and George,
swallowing them up in a blinding white light. Their skin and bones
started to melt away, being eaten alive by the mystical dragons’
wrath.

“I—it can’t be,” stuttered Simeon, unable to
believe his own eyes. “The summoner has awoken.”

Simeon dropped Xander in a hurry. The once
mighty vampire had been humbled from the fury unleashed by a young
woman. He quickly realized that victory would not be in his grasp
tonight and took off into the night.

“Emily!” shouted Xander, lifting his battered
body up, and rushing over towards her.

Emily stood motionless, staring blankly at
the chaos she had caused. Unable to comprehend what had just
happened, Emily’s mind overloaded, causing her to slowly lose
consciousness.

Xander ran up the steps, and threw his arms
around Emily. He grabbed on tightly to her, as her knees began to
quiver. Whatever power she had awoken, it had drained her
completely.

“W—what was that?” Emily asked, in complete
shock. “What did I just do?”

“I don’t know,” said Xander, running his
hands through her hair. “I just don’t know.”

Emily’s head was beginning to spin now.
Unable to keep conscious, she fainted into Xander’s arms.

“Emily!” cried Xander, as he held a
cataleptic Emily in his arms. “You can’t leave me now!”

The End

The Awakening

A Moonlit Night Saga: Episode Two

Chapter One

Emily walked along the beach, her toes sunk
into the sand as the water washed against her feet. It was
peaceful, and she found herself strolling along the shore without
purpose or worry.

Seagulls gawked, as they flew high above the
ocean; and the bright sun sparkled in Emily’s eyes, as she watched
them from a distance.

Dolphins danced in the ocean while monkeys
played in the trees. Amazing, she thought, witnessing the beauty of
countless creatures living in harmony. Wherever she was, life was
good.

Was she in heaven? How did she get here?
These questions should have been important to Emily, but they
couldn’t have been further from her mind.

“Come to me,” a voice whispered in the
breeze.

Emily spun around, seeking the voice that had
spoken to her. Her eyes frantically searched around, hoping to find
anyone nearby.

“Come to me,” the voice repeated. “Come to
me…my child.”

“Mother?” asked Emily, yelling out to the
unknown. “Is that you?”

The only response Emily got was the
lighthearted laughter of several gibbons playing in the trees.
Emily had not seen her mother in many years, and searched the area,
looking for her.

Emily sprinted down the wet sand, hoping to
see her mother standing on the beach. Finding nothing, she dropped
to her knees, trying to remember just what had happened to her.

“You will find no answers on the ground,”
said her mother.

Emily picked herself up off the sand, and
spun around to see her mother.

“I—I can’t believe it,” said Emily, staring
back at the woman who had given her life. “How is this
possible?”

Her mother, Amanda, hadn’t aged more than a
day since Emily last saw her. It was as if she had been frozen in a
moment in time.

“Mother, you’re…beautiful,” said Emily, at a
loss for words. “I’ve missed you so much.”

“I know, my child,” replied Amanda, embracing
Emily with open arms. “But I’ve never left your side.”

“What do you mean?” Emily asked. “I don’t
understand.”

“You’re not meant to,” answered Amanda,
stroking her daughter’s hair. “Not yet.”

Emily pulled herself back and with a worried
look in her eyes, she asked, “Why am I here? Where is father?”

“You are here because you are meant to be,”
Amanda said. “And where we are, is a world apart from the place you
were born.”

“You’re not making any sense,” said Emily,
grabbing hold of her mother’s shoulders, giving her a shake.
“You’re speaking in riddles.”

“I wish it were that simple, my child,” said
Amanda, looking her daughter deep in the eyes. “We only have a few
short moments together, and I have an important message for
you.”

“What do you mean?” Emily questioned. “What
happens in a few short moments—?”

“Please, just listen!” interrupted Amanda,
turning sternly at her daughter. “I know your powers have finally
awoken; you wouldn’t be here now unless they had. I also know that
you have been introduced to vampires; that some have come to hurt
you, and some have come to save you.”

Slowly, Emily began to remember the events
that had led her to this meeting. She remembered the terrifying
ghouls, and their vicious master; her friends, who would give their
lives to save her, and finally the vampire, Alexander, who had
nearly lost his own life.

“You cannot trust them!” Amanda shouted.
“Vampires only know death and decay. They are parasites to your
world, and seek to destroy what they cannot control. I will not let
them hurt you…like they did to me.”

“The vampires killed you?” asked Emily,
beginning to tear up. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t know—.”

Her mother, knowing she had little time left,
continued, “The vampires will try and destroy you, and everyone
that you care about. They will try and seduce you, until you care
about nothing other than blood. They will try and break your very
existence.”

“Why mother? None of this makes any sense,”
Emily said.

“Because of who you are, and what you
represent,” Amanda said. “Unlike anything else in the world, they
fear you. Everyone single one of them. Do not trust a vampire; not
any of them.”

From what Emily had seen of Simeon, she would
have to agree. However, Xander was also a vampire, and she would
probably already be dead if it wasn’t for him. Looking deep into
her mother’s eyes, she said, “Not all vampires are like that. A
vampire saved me—.”

“All vampires are like that!” Amanda
screeched. “Especially him—!”

All of a sudden, a powerful force grabbed
hold of Emily, ripping her away from the beach; away from the
mother she had just found.

“No!” screamed Emily, as she flew into the
air, high above the birds. “Not yet, please! Please just give me
just one more minute with my mother!”

Chapter Two

“Emily…,” said Steven, prodding his sister in
bed. “C’mon, it’s almost lunch time. Are you going to sleep all day
or what?”

Emily slowly opened her eyes, and looking up
at her brother, she asked, “How did I get here?”

“Well…I’m assuming you fell asleep?”
questioned Steven, with a puzzled look on his face.

That’s when Emily remembered the events of
last night, both the attack and her visit with her mother.

“You won’t believe it, Steven, but I met
mother last night,” Emily said.

“You must really be out of it,” said Steven,
shaking his head. “Mom died a long time ago, you know that.”

“Y—yeah, you’re right,” Emily stuttered. “I
could have sworn that I saw her.”

“What happened last night?” Steven asked.
“What happened to your gentleman caller?”

Figuring that it was best not to worry her
brother, Emily slid out of bed, and said, “Oh…nothing happened. We
talked for a bit, and then I went to bed.”

“Yeah, sure,” said Steven, laughing. “You
tapped that ass, didn’t you?”

“Ugh, you’re such a pig sometimes,”
complained Emily, entering the bathroom.

“Hurry up and get ready!” shouted Steven,
from the bedroom. “I figured you needed to get some fresh air,
after the rough last couple of days.”

“Where are we going?” inquired Emily, turning
on the sink faucets.

“Out for lunch with Tyler and Julia, hope you
don’t mind,” Steven replied.

“Not at all, I think that’s exactly what I
need,” Emily said. “Give me a couple minutes and I’ll be ready to
leave.”

And so, the two siblings made their way
downtown. They walked down the busy streets, which was unusual for
the small city of Georgetown.

“Look at all these people!” exclaimed Emily,
as all the strange people brushed by her. “Are they all
tourists?”

“I don’t think so,” Steven answered. “Since
when did Georgetown become a tourist destination?”

“Well I don’t recognize any of them,” said
Emily, looking around. “Not a single one—.”

Emily’s voice trailed off, as she something
caught her eye.

Down the block, a strange man was staring
directly at her. It was almost as if he was staring straight into
her soul. When Emily looked back at him, the man looked away. For
whatever reason, he didn’t seem to want Emily to know that he had
been watching her.

“Did you see that?” asked Emily, pointing
down the street. “That man over there, he was looking directly at
me.”

Looking down the street, Steven searched for
the man Emily had been talking about. Finding none, he put his hand
on her shoulder, and said, “You’re losing it, Emily. There’s no one
watching you. C’mon, let’s go, they’re waiting for us.”

They found Tyler and Julia, waiting for them
a few blocks down the street. They were sitting on the patio,
having a few beers. Grabbing some chairs, Steven and Emily joined
them at the table.

“Hey, bitches!” shouted Julia as they sat
down. “I’m already on my third margarita, time to catch up.”

“And you call me a lush,” said Tyler, taking
a sip of his beer. “You’re one wild woman. Don’t ever change,
baby.”

“You love it,” said Julia, scrunching up her
face.

“All right, you guys,” said Steven, waving
his hands in their face. “Let’s settle down.”

Emily looked around, searching for the man
that had been staring at her. She wasn’t about to overlook this,
like her brother had suggested.

That’s when she noticed someone else staring
directly back at her. This time it was a woman in her fifties. She
had been staring at Emily, as she pretended to read the local
newspaper; something Emily knew was never
that
interesting.

“—Emily!” shouted Julia, tugging on Emily’s
arm. “What are you going to drink?”

Emily looked back to the table, where an
impatient waiter was waiting on her order.

“I—I’ll just have a pint of whatever you’ve
got on tap,” Emily said. “Thank you.”

“Alright, now that you’re both here we can
have a proper goodbye to my best friend, Emily,” said Julia,
raising her glass in the air.

“Umm, Jules, they don’t have their drinks
yet,” said Tyler, lowering his girlfriend’s glass. “I think
someone’s already had a few too many.”

Emily’s friends continued to talk and share
stories, but it couldn’t have been any further from her mind. She
scanned the sea of people, looking for anyone out of place.

All Emily could find were people just like
her, trying to enjoy the warm summer day. They laughed, shared
stories with their friends, and tried to live their lives one day
at a time.

“Are you even listening to us, Emily?” asked
Julia, signaling for another drink. “What’s wrong with you?”

“She’s afraid everyone is out to get her,”
Steven explained. “She’s still a little shaken up about the
attack.”

“Well can you blame her?” Tyler interjected.
“It was a pretty traumatic event—.”