The sound of cicadas buzzed in the thick summer air. I lay sprawled on the grass, tiny arms and legs stretched out, gazing up at the endless blue sky. Then, without warning 'splat' a burst of cold water hit my face.
Laughter followed. That familiar, teasing kind.
It was my big brother, grinning with a water gun in hand.
"Ha! Thought you were dead or something," he joked between chuckles.
I growled, wiping my face, irritation bubbling up. I sprang to my feet and chased after him. He was fast, way too fast. But I was a stubborn little brat. I didn't stop. Not until I got him.
I still remember how colorful that day was.
It burned itself into my memory, vivid, bright, alive.
Now, it's different. Everyone's gone. My brother vanished. My father too. And my mother... she died giving birth to me.
I open my eyes.
A puff of tobacco smoke curls into the sky. I'm lying on a park bench, dazed. My car sits by the entrance. My stomach growls. I haven't eaten. Since last night i failed to kill my source of payment, got stealed instead.
"This sucks…"
Later, as I drag myself back from the park, my hand begins to tremble. My eyes widen.
The car? it's gone.
Vanished.
The only thing I owned. The only thing I truly loved. My home.
How do you even begin to distract yourself from a world that keeps taking everything?
I bite my lip until it bleeds.
That's when I smell it. A stench,twisted, foul, laced with magic. It's mixing with the fading scent of my car. My sanctuary.
My body reacts before I think. Fury rises. Old, familiar fury.
Luckily, I still have my gun. Just one. Not enough, not against someone Gifted. A magic-user. But it'll have to do.
I run.
The trace is fresh. I don't know what they'll do to my car, my home, if I'm too late. But I've been a runner since I was a kid. I don't stop now. (sigh) why would a woman like me have to go through all of this?..
"Aah… this feeling..."
Exhaustion. Anger. It stirs something deep.
It feels like something I've felt before… long, long ago.
I just don't remember..