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Story Notes:

I've written loads of (unpublished) stories, but this is my first TG work.  I first had the idea over 10 years ago, and have kept it to myself all along.  I hope it's as entertaining and interesting to everyone else as it is to me.

Disclaimer: The original characters and plot of this story are the property of the author. No infringement of pre-existing copyright is intended. This story is copyright (c) 2009 Kara99. All rights reserved. 

 

 

Author's Chapter Notes:

Chapter 1 establishes our protagonist and gives a peek into the puzzling issues aren't even mentioned to a close friend, and allows us to see that there is something far deeper and perhaps magical than anyone can guess.

    Chapter 1

 

     “NO!” the young woman gasped.  She tried in vain to get up, but her injuries wouldn’t allow it.  She could only sit and watch as her companion stood her ground despite the curved blade of their enemy’s scythe jutted out her back.

    “And thus,” the large man robed in black sneered, “you die.”

    “So I shall,” his victim said.  She could feel her own blood (and her very life) flowing out of her wounds, could feel the cold steel of the blade inside her body.   Tears ran down her cheeks and she coughed, spurting blood out of her mouth as she did.  Despite this, she smiled back at her murderer.  “But you… will not be… so fortunate…” she said through forced breaths.  The ground at their feet began to quake and there was a sudden flash as bolts of energy began to swirl around them.

    “What are you doing?” the man asked, surprised by this sudden surge of power.  Then his eyes widened as he understood.  “No!  I won’t allow it!”  He yanked his weapon out of her and raised it over his head with a scream of rage as the torrential effects of her final attack seemed to tear a hole in the very air behind him, revealing a void of darkness within.  There was a blinding flash of light, and-

    Kyle awoke with a start.  He was sitting up in bed, soaked in a cold sweat.  He found himself feeling his chest, and felt somehow relieved that nothing was wrong.  He got up and walked to the bathroom, wiping his tears away on a towel.  Had he been crying?  Flicking the light switch, he startled as he saw himself in the mirror.  “Get a grip,” he muttered to himself.  He didn’t know what else he was expecting to see, anyway.  It was just the same thing he always saw.  Sometimes that happened though.  He would have moments where he didn’t recognize himself, and though it bothered him greatly, he didn’t want to talk to a shrink about it  There didn’t seem to be any point in paying someone to tell you  that you’re as screwed up as everyone else and give you some pills.

    He studied himself.  Green eyes, chestnut hair that went to the base of his neck, rounded face, small frame.  Yep, same ol’ Kyle.  He flexed his arm.  He spent quite a bit of time exercising and training in various fighting techniques, but it didn’t show much.  Sure, he looked athletic enough, but he was doomed to have small muscles to go with his small body, and no amount of working out seemed to be able to fix that.  As he turned his body, he looked at the strange mark on the back of his right shoulder.  A lot of people thought he had a tattoo, but few could believe he’d had it all his life.  If nothing else, it looked impressive.  About the size of a tennis ball, it was a four-pointed star, like he’d seen on old-style maps, with two crescent-shaped slivers overlaid on top of it, making it look like an eight-pointed star.  There were strange symbols in between the eight points, and the entire design was contained in a circle.  He had no idea what the hell it was supposed to be, but he always felt comforted when he looked at it.

    Splashing his face with cold water, Kyle realized he was still shaking.  That was “the bad dream,” as he’d always called it.  Like always, most of the details faded from his memory, but he knew there was a sinister man, a dying woman, someone screaming, and what sounded like a hurricane all around them.  It was one of a handful of recurring dreams he’d had as long as he could remember.  All of them involved some kind of fairy-tale land with castles and such, and the dying woman was always there (although usually she wasn’t dying and sometimes was very young).  Kyle had no clue what these dreams were supposed to mean, and it didn’t help that he only remembered bits and pieces of them when he woke up, but it felt like there was some deeper meaning to them.

    Meanwhile, in another part of the city, a woman stood on top of large apartment building and surveyed the streets below.  She was dressed in odd clothing (at least, for this world), a hooded cloak over a simple traveler’s tunic and breeches, with dusty boots that looked to have walked many leagues, and she was adorned with several sparkling jeweled rings and a beautiful amulet.  In one hand she carried an iron staff that had a precious blue stone set at one end and several smaller gems all over it.  This world was so insignificant that it had no magic in it whatsoever, yet it had proved to be an effective hiding place for the one she sought.  It made sense.  Who would think to look for someone in a place like this?  But they had found it at last, and now it was a matter of tracking down the target.  She only needed to focus her energies to sense the presence she was looking for.  In a world devoid of enchantment, one who was full of such power was easy enough to locate.  She felt no other mystical auras around her at all, and smiled.  “Looks like I found you first.”  This was going to be easier than she had hoped.  With a wave of her hand, the woman vanished into the darkness of night as most of the city slept.


    Kyle sat in the food court at the mall, lost in thought.  He had noticed a short skirt displayed in a nearby store window.  The sign said it was on sale, but who in their right mind would pay even that much for it?  Sure, it was cute enough, and maybe with the right outfit-

    “Hey, buddy,” a voice said, startling him.  “You still with us?”

    He quickly looked down at his lunch on the table as he felt the warm blood rushing to his cheeks.  “Yeah,” he muttered, “sorry.”  He’d been lost in one of those weird little moments when he thought about things in ways that weren’t exactly typical of your average guy.  Like his dreams, it was something that he couldn’t do anything about and preferred not to discuss with anyone.  Not even his best friend who was sitting across from him.

    “Okay, just checking,” Graham said before taking another bite out of his sandwich.  He had known Kyle for over 10 years, and knew better than to dig any deeper.  They’d come from similar backgrounds: abandoned since childbirth, in and out of foster care, finally winding up on the streets before their teenage years, so it seemed fitting that they should run into each other and wind up sticking together.  Graham had been 4 years older (Kyle being only 12 when they met), but he couldn’t help but take him under his wing and helping him learn how to survive.  Graham’s big break came after a run-in with police over a few stolen wallets when he was 19.  The judge saw something in him that he hadn’t even seen himself, and put him through one of those boot camps to turn kids’ lives around.  To his surprise, it worked.  He wanted to turn his life around, and now, at 23, he had made a name for himself as a member of the police department.  Of course, he had Kyle sold on the idea right away and now got to refer to him as “rookie.”

    “So, anyway,” Kyle said, trying to sound casual, “anything big going on today?”

    “Nah, it should be pretty quiet.  After the drug-bust last week, most of the big leaguers will be laying low.  I’ll probably take you  along with me tonight, if you don’t mind.”

    “Sure.”  He brightened at this.  A slow night for Graham was still better than sitting in a patrol car clocking people getting off the highway or getting puked on by drunks.  Plus, Graham had taught him everything he knew about fighting, and he was always at his best when they teamed up.  “We should probably get going pretty soon.  In the time it will take you to find your badge, we’ll be late.”

    Graham shrugged.  “Everyone needs a little disorganization here and there.”

    Kyle got up and threw away his trash.  He turned around and bumped into a tall woman with long blonde hair.  “Sorry,” he said.

    “It’s my fault,” she replied, then her blue eyes got wide and the color drained from her face.

    “Are you okay?” Kyle asked.  He motioned for Graham, who got up and hurried over to them.  “Get a chair, I think she’s going to pass out,” he said.

    “No, no, I’m alright,” the woman said.  “Sorry, I, uh, just thought I saw something.”

    “A ghost, by the looks of it,” Graham remarked.

    She smiled.  “Something like that.”  She looked at Kyle, studying him with great intent.  “You look a lot like someone I once knew a long time ago.  Maybe a close relative?”

    “I’m afraid I don’t know who,” Kyle answered.  “I was orphaned, so I couldn’t tell you anything about my family.”

    “You sure you’re alright, ma’am?” Graham asked.

    “I’ll be fine.  Thank you, though.”

    “Alright, bud, we’d better get going.”

    She watched the pair of them walk away.  There was no mistaking that she had found the one she sought.  She had been waiting 19 years for this, but never expected this turn of events.  Of course, she wouldn‘t be the same person that she was back then, but this was going to change things.  “Well, well,” she said to herself.  “This is going to be interesting.  We’ll have to handle this a little more carefully.”  She began to follow them from a distance, her eyes fixed on Kyle.  “Won’t we, my lady?”

Chapter End Notes:

 

 

Disclaimer: The original characters and plot of this story are the property of the author. No infringement of pre-existing copyright is intended. This story is copyright (c) 200? Author Name. All rights reserved.

The transformation will be set up in Chapter 2, and I hope to have it out soon.  Thanks to everyone who took a chance on me and (hopefully) enjoyed it.

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