Chapter 1

Chapter 1

(Shadow)

          “What the heck happened?” I asked the other people. I could not see anything in front of me. I could hear the other people in the room though. For some reason, the smoke and fire was gone.

          “Quick, follow the sound of my voice! We need to stay together!” The girl with the maroon hair and green eyes said loudly and slowly. There was a shuffling of feet and muffled gasps whenever someone hit something or someone. Once we were all in the same relative location, I saw a dim light heading our way. The girl that owned this house gasped.

          “Are we in heaven?” She asked in awe. I looked at her like she was crazy, but she didn’t see me. What a stupid little kid. I thought to myself. She wasn’t even supposed to be here. If she had just left us, we would have been fine and her parents wouldn’t have died. I was about to answer her question, but I decided it would be better for someone else to do it. It was the girl who gave the instructions first who answered,

          “I don’t think so. Heaven has much more light and happiness. This almost seems like when you are in a forest and the sun is setting. Do you know what I mean?”  I heard the little girl explain how she had gotten lost in a forest and all that other stuff. I was about to object to what the other girl had said, but that was when a man about thirty years old walked up to us. Do you know how freaky it is having a complete stranger walk up to you out from darkness? Yea, you should try it sometime. Actually, don’t try it, because that is just asking for stranger danger and other stuff, if you know what I mean.

Thanks to the light, I could see the other’s faces. The girl with the blond hair and golden eyes was looking at the stranger with uncertainty. The girl with the maroon hair and green eyes was looking at the stranger in confusion. The other girl looked shocked and scared at the same time.

          “I am Demosthenes, God of wine.” He said deeply, “I have a gift for each of you. Shadow, please step forward.” He said it like he wasn’t the crazy one. He said it like we all knew what he was talking about. The only problem with that is… I didn’t get it. I looked up at the “God” like he was completely nuts.

“Do you think I’m stupid? Why the hell do you think I would want to come up to some random stranger and trust that he will give me a gift? Are you on some kind of medication?” I said with as much scorn as I could muster, which was a lot actually. Everyone gasped and stared at me, but I could tell they were thinking the same thing. Demosthenes didn’t seem to be offended by the rude questions, though.

“I come to recruit you into my gang. I have watched you from the time you were born and I liked the way you turned out. My client, Mr. Crawners, has four children that need protection from the other gangs in the world. They are trying to kill them and take over the world.”

“So you expect us to just believe you and risk our lives for these kids we don’t even know? That sounds like the most stupid thing I have ever heard!” I exclaimed.

“There are certain… surprises along the way. If you choose to accept my offer, they will help you. I must warn you though. The going is very tough. Four kids like you might not be able to handle it.” Demosthenes said, chuckling a little. That ended it. I was not going to just stand by and let this stupid person say I was weak and couldn’t have a bunch of “little surprises”. I knew my eyes were turning black because I saw that stupid wine god glance uncertainly at them. Good, I wanted him to be afraid. I marched up to him one step at a time, Getting angrier and angrier by the moment. I stopped about three feet from him.

“Listen to me when I say this. I’m not afraid of anything or anyone. Bring it on! We’re ready for anything.”

“I’m not ready. I’m scared.” Soul said. I closed my eyes for a moment, trying to calm myself down. Why did little kids have to be so scared all the time?

“So you believe me?” Demosthenes asked, recomposing himself.

“I believe you, but you better not try anything funny.” I said. Demosthenes nodded and spoke in a deep, raspy voice that was not his.

          “Shadow, you were abandoned by your father before you were born, and your dear mother died giving birth to you. Because of this, you have never really known love. I give you the touch of death. With this power, you can take away life from anyone you would like. Use it wisely.” Awsome! I got the gift of death! Sure it was a bunch of bogus, but it was nice to know he understood me. I turned and walked away a little distance from Demosthenes to see the rest get their gifts. I could see the girl with blond hair shiver as the god called her up next. She walked up the Demosthenes on shaky feet.

School has been really tough, so I'm sorry if I havent been able to write. Anyways, here goes. This is the last part of the prologue.

(Soul)

          I ran through the cool water, Laughing as glittering drops made the air sparkle. I was on an island in the Bahamas with my family. There was a beach, a forest, and a port on the island. I was having so much fun. I looked in the water at my reflection. I had blond, almost white hair, and light blue eyes. I am really tiny for my age, which is nine, and I rely on agility and flexibility rather than strength.

          “Time for lunch, Soul!” My dad called from our cottage in the forest.

“Coming dad!” I shouted back. I kicked water everywhere while going back to the sand. I ran up the sandy beach into the cool, refreshing woods. Flowers were everywhere and colorful birds of every size and type flew through the thick, green canopy above me. The air smelled of fruit and rain-to-come, yet the sky was as blue as the water. When I got to the door, my mom and dad were waiting for me with a plate of pork and potatoes. I took it eagerly and sat down on the porch swing. Mom and Dad sat on either side of me. I felt safe and warm in between them and contentedly ate my lunch. After lunch, I ran up to Dad and asked,

          “Can I go down to the port please Daddy” He looked at my puppy dog eyes and said,

          “Yes you can. Be careful you don’t get in people’s way though.”

          “Thank you, Daddy!” I cried before racing through the forest, down the beach, and all the way to the port. It was a busy day today. People were coming on cruise ships and sailors were working on their boats before heading out. It was the same old same old. I was used to seeing it all. No one bothered to talk to me. It was probably because they were super busy. At first, nothing caught my eye, but then I saw what looked like three planks of wood on the beach. I ran over to investigate and almost screamed. The “three planks of wood” were three bodies lying with their faces exposed to the sun. Suddenly my head started to hurt. It had a tendency to do that whenever I had a lot of questions. I knelt on the sand and held my head in my hands. Questions raced through my head.

Where were they from? Were they still alive? What were their names? How did they get here? How old were they? Did they have any parents? If they did, where were they? Were they related? Finally the pain subsided. I got shakily back on my feet and darted back to get my parents. A little while later, the three kids were in the house having some water. There were two girls, one with purple hair and green eyes, and one with golden hair and golden eyes. The other kid was a boy about the same age as the other two. He had black hair with dark brown eyes. My mom came in the room later and said,

          “I’ll go get us some snacks, and then you three can tell us a little about yourselves.” She and Dad walked into the other room, leaving us four alone. The boy looked as if he were just about to say something when a gunshot was heard. Startled, I raced into the other room to see my parents lying on the floor dead. My eyes brimmed with tears and I knelt beside them. My arms felt for a pulse, but I knew it was in vain. Their eyes stared unknowing into space.

“No…” I said quietly.

“No!” I yelled at the top of my lungs. It was a long, grief-filled scream. I heard faint voices in the background, but they were fading. I was just about to lay down when there was a crackling sound and smoke began pouring in from all the windows. I didn’t seem to hear anything though. I was crying and didn’t care about anything else. The girl with the purple hair came in and hauled me to my feet.

“We have to get out of here.” She exclaimed over the crackling of fire. We went back to the others and the boy said,

          “It isn’t safe in the house anymore. We have to get into the fresh air. Follow me.” We all got up and ran into my parent’s bedroom (I burst into tears at the sight of it.) The smoke was bad and getting even worse. Once we were all in the room, the door slammed shut. We looked around us, hoping to find an escape. The smoke was heavy and it was hard to breath. I tried to climb out of a window, but it was boarded up. I groped in vain at the windows. I felt lightheaded and my head felt like it was getting split in two. All of a sudden, everything went pitch-black.

You know, I have a horrible memory!

Sorry for not posting in a LONG TIME! I just got super busy! well, here's the next part of my story! hope you like it!

(Charm)

“The vampire came steadily closer and closer. Its chest was heaving and I could smell death. It was just about to strike Millie when –“. Something hit me in the back of my head and I dropped the book I was reading. I could see some kids peeking from behind a foam block near me. I pretended like I didn’t see them and continued to read. I was in a corner in the kiddy room. Here, there was no noise to bother me and hardly anyone came over here. Soon I heard the wiz of another item being thrown at me and caught it without even looking up. I could hear gasps of shock and shuffling feet which hinted that they left. Soon Jade came up though, so I put aside the book I was reading.

“This is ridiculous! We should be in the ballroom, not the kiddy room. I am thirteen and you are fourteen.” She huffed as she sat down next to me.

          “It was for the better, though. Think of how happy you made Mom.” I replied simply.

          “Whatever.” Jade retorted. “I’m just happy that we didn’t have to wear anything fancy.” I looked at myself and Jade. I was dressed in blue jeans and a pink top. Jade had on black pants and a grey sweater.

          “Wait. Be quiet for a second, Jade!” I whispered anxiously. Jade was used to me hearing things she couldn’t, so she shut up instantly.

          “Do you hear that too?” I asked her quietly. I saw Jade straining to hear. After a few moments of concentration she said,

          “Yeah, it sounds like running water.” She said gravely. “Why would there be running water here.” Suddenly it hit me. I jumped up so fast I dropped my book. I raced to find the nearest adult, but couldn’t find any.

          “They all must be at the party.” I cursed under my breath. Even though the ship was rapidly filling up with water, I did not feel scared. Calmly, I jumped onto the nearest foam block and yelled at the top of my lungs,

          “Everyone needs to go to the ballroom now. Your parents are waiting to give you treats.” All the littler kids rushed for the exit. I heard some of them exclaim something, but it was too noisy to make out what it was. I knew I shouldn’t have lied like that to everyone, but if I told them the truth, they would cause an unnecessary panic. All the people in the room ran into the corridor to find it filled with two inches of water. Without stopping, they rushed up the stairs to the ballroom. Jade and I stayed back to make sure no one else was on this level of the boat. Then we raced up the stairs and ran into a boy about our age with black hair and brown eyes. He seemed to be running from something and did not stop to tell us what was going on. He just kept on running down the hallway. We followed him all the way to the edge of the boat. The boy took a life raft, put it in the water, and hopped in.

          “Can we come?” I asked quickly. He nodded and we jumped in. After the boat was in the water, we paddled until we couldn’t paddle any more. We watched the slow sinking of the boat. Suddenly, I thought of mom and dad. How they thought we were in the kiddy room behaving ourselves. I could already tell they weren’t going to make it. The screams filled the air as the boat disappeared below the waves. I turned and looked at the only other two survivors. They looked so tired and worn out. We were all aching at rowing for so long. We settled down for the night, but I stayed up later into the night than the other two. The boat had long since gone below the water. There was no movement on top of the water. Nothing stirred; no one was alive but us three. Pretty soon, I was getting tired. I lay down in the life raft and thought of my parents. My eyes brimmed with tears. Things started to get fuzzy. Without thinking, I whispered,

“I’m so sorry Mom and Dad.” Into the wind. Then everything went black.

Next Part!!!!

(Shadow)

          “Get back here you stowaway!” The captain called as he chased me down the corridor.

“You can’t catch me cause you’re too fat.” I called back to him. I turned around and started running backwards. I reached into my pockets and pulled out a gumball. Perfect! I thought to myself. I judged the distance and the speed, then threw it up at the ceiling. The ball ricocheted off the light, pushing the button that releases it in perfect timing. The captain stopped right under the light to avoid getting hit with the gumball and instead, got hit with the falling light. Whoever put a releasing button on lights is a genius. The captain was momentarily stunned, so I took the advantage and ran as fast as I could away from him. As I raced down the nearly deserted corridor, I thought about where to hide. Finally I thought of the boiler room, but where was it? Before I could even guess though, the captain came scooting around the corner. Wow! Fat captains can move pretty quickly when they get hit by a light. Good to know. Couldn’t these people here give me a break? I just wanted to know what a cruise ship was like. I’ve never been on a cruise ship. It was nice. A little too fancy for my taste, but hey, it was a cruise ship! Besides, it wasn’t my fault the ship left with me on it. Even if I didn’t try to get off…

          The captain started to slow down and so did I. Once he was out of sight though, I took off at full force until I found the boiler room. I may look like a thief and a stowaway, but I’m not. Just putting that out there. I have a normal build, black hair, and dark brown eyes that show the hardships I went through in life. I am very good at strategies even though I hate chess. I sat down on the cold metal floor and looked at my surroundings. There weren’t many places to hide in case anyone came in, so I decided to hide near the door, so if anyone came in they would not see me for a little while. I would just have to hope that no one came in. As I sat there staring at a white wall (yea, so exciting) I couldn’t help but notice how angry people got for no reason. Footsteps came from the way I came and got closer and closer. I grabbed a fork in my pocket. Yes, I keep a fork in my pocket. I would get sent to jail for stabbing someone with a knife, but not for stabbing someone with a fork. Believe me when I say this. Forks hurt just as bad as knives. The footsteps raced past the boiler room and faded in the distance. I started to relax. Everything was going to be great. I could stay down here for the rest of the day, then, at night, I could sneak upstairs and “borrow” some food.

Suddenly, the water broke out of the boiler and started creeping towards me. Actually, it collided with me like a tidal wave. The breath got knocked out of me. My clothes became soaked within seconds. They were really heavy and I had trouble swimming. Which way was up, which way was down? I had no idea, but I was starting to get light-headed. My lungs started to ache. I was almost out of air. I gave one last attempt at life. My feet kicked madly, and my arms whipped through the water. Dim light hit me and I realized I was almost there. I reached the surface of the water and gasped for breath. The water was rising fast and I had maybe three feet left before there was no air. I dived back underwater and grabbed the doorknob. The door opened with a BANG! All the water rushed into the hallway, I rode the water like a wave. I raced past the captain, who got knocked off his feet. Soon, I felt the floor under my feet, so I started to run up stairs and along corridors. My only chance of surviving was to find a life boat and get out of this sinking ship. My only chance… 

OK. So I'm, like, writing a story here. I need some advice on how to make it better. Please understand that not everything you say you want changed is going to get changed. Here is the first part of my story. I am only going to post the prologue. Again, sorry for any inconvenience.

Prologue

(Jade)

“I don’t want to go to the kiddy room, Mom. There aren’t going to be any people to hang out with. I wanted to see Jake. I don’t think Jake is going to be in the kiddy room though. No! He’s going to be dancing with some other girl while I’m stuck in a tiny room with a bunch of babies.” I said as my mom was getting ready for the ball. My family and I were on a cruise heading into the Bahamas. There was a ball in the ballroom and my mom and dad were invited, but not me. “I don’t see why I can’t go.” I asked for the hundredth time. “It’s not like you’re going to see me that often.”

          “You aren’t old enough, you aren’t well behaved enough, and I just don’t want to have to worry about you getting into trouble. Besides, if Charm can’t go, what makes you think you can go?” My mom answered with a little strain.

“But I’m eleven and Charm is twelve. How old do you think we have to be to go to a party? Ninety?” At that moment, Charm came in. Great timing. Charm looks like me, same small, but strong body, same features, but she has maroon hair and green eyes, while I have blond hair with golden eyes. I looked at Charm, and then gave an exasperated glance towards mom. Mom always brings Charm into every situation. Sometimes it is as if she likes Charm better than me, but I would never ask her. The only person I would consider talking about it too would be Charm, because we are so close. She is always so calm about everything. Nothing seems to upset her. One time at school, Charm was hanging with some of her friends in the hallway and this guy came right up to her and slammed her books on the ground. She didn’t even mind, though. Without even flinching, she stared at the guy until he picked up her books for her. He walked away looking very confused and he never bothered her again. Ever since then, she has been known as the peace-maker of the family. My mom walked into the other room to pick out jewelry. I followed her to the door, trying to be as annoying as possible. She always gave in when she wanted me to go away.

          “Charm doesn’t want to go either. Right Charm?” I questioned her, trying to send some sort of signal for her to go along with it. I think its called telekinesis. She didn’t seem to pick up on it, because she gave me a calm smile and said.

“Actually, I don’t really mind going. I have plenty of books to read and you can bring your coin collection. I bet people will drop coins. You could add to your collection. Didn’t you always want to find that 1972 double-strike?”

“ Charm…” I started to whisper, but right at that moment Mom came in from the other room where she was getting ready and exclaimed,

          “Perfect! It’s settled then. Thank you, Charm. I don’t know what I would do without you!” Mom gave Charm one of those, you saved me from answering “that child” and she gave me one of her smiles. Instead of returning it, I gave Mom a glare before heading into my room to get my coin collection. Mom always thinks Charm is more mature than me only because we are a year apart. It’s really not that big a deal. She just gets me so mad sometimes. I really like my mom; this is just one of those times when I don’t. This is one of those times when I wish she would just get out of my life. I was about to shut my bedroom door, but for some reason I felt the need to just look at my room for a little while. It was going to be a long day and I guess I wanted some peace. I took in all the posters on the walls, my messed up bed and Charm’s perfectly laid out sheets on top of a perfect mattress. Suddenly I felt angry, like it was Charm’s fault for not letting us go to the party. I knew better than that though. I went into the bathroom and flattened my hair a little. After I had taken a long look at my room, I rushed out into the corridor, leaving my coin collection behind.

Vocaloid!

There is an anime show that is starting to become more and more popular. It is called Vocaloid. Vocaloid involves five "main" japanese characters: Rin, Len, Miku, Kaito and Meiko. They express themselves through songs almost exactly like glee. It is a great show to watch, but I do warn you. The show is in japanese, so you have to read the subtext and they like to sing songs that have a "death" kind of twist on them. Other than that, they are an amazing show!