Reborn (Rise of the Realms: Book One) by D. Fischer

Author:D. Fischer [Fischer, D.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2018-02-08T22:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER NINE

AIDEN VANDER

THE TWEEN

“Where am I?” I ask. I’ve never been here before. A place like this doesn’t exist.

Jane tilts her head, her eyes flicking to the side of my face. “The Tween.”

The side of my lips tilts up in mockery. “The Tween?”

“Yes.” She hesitates. “It’s the voided area between the Earth Realm,” she pauses, turning her head and mumbling her next words, “and the Death Realm.”

My head whips to hers. “No Heaven or Hell?”

She shakes her head, her hair waving and fanning the area with the scent of roses. “No, dear.”

I glance around, my jaw flexing once at such a drastic change to my previous existence. I’ve never been good with changes. Maybe that’s why I stuck with the same routine as a human, even though I loathed it.

The Tween looks just like Earth, except swirls of fog and mist float about, licking the moss-covered, gnarled tree trunks of the forest we stand in. There’s no earthy smells here, no sounds of life. Birds should be singing, flapping their wings as they bounce from tree to tree. Squirrels should be collecting nuts at the base of every trunk before cursing us in their native tongue. Bugs should be buzzing about their busy tasks.

But they’re not. They don’t exist here. This isn’t a place for beating hearts.

Jane takes a deep breath and gives a shake of her head, forcing a smile. She takes a step forward. “Ready?” My mind flashes back to those same words she said in the alley. I can almost hear the sirens again.

I nod, unsure but willing. Where else am I going to go? I clear my throat unnecessarily. “How was I able to dream about you . . . about where I would . . .” I flex my jaw, “die?”

Fallen branches pass through our skin—it’s pointless to avoid them by lifting our feet. She tilts her head, considering her next words carefully, as she continues walking in front of me. “I’m a shade—you’re a shade. The Earth Realm and the Death Realm are mixing, making it possible to cross over.”

I frown. “Mixing? How?”

“No one knows,” she mumbles, etched with warm concern. “It’s never happened before.”

I’m just about to question her again when she stops, searching the open space available between the trees, her head swiveling this way and that.

“What are we waiting for?” I ask, my voice rumbling as I glance around and see nothing but a lifeless forest.

She doesn’t answer. As we wait, I shift my weightless body uncomfortably. Her head snaps to the side and I follow her line of vision.

Two figures off in the distance walk with unhurried steps. A slow smile spreads across Jane’s face as they get closer.

A brown-haired man, lanky but muscular, is ahead of the another. A wide, goofy, lopsided smile shows straight, pearly-white teeth. His hair is cropped short and he’s transparent—a shade, just like me. Bruises around his neck and wrists are visible, providing me with evidence of his death. What a death that must have been, to die with a noose around your neck.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.