A cursory glance at the clock’s glowing numbers told me I’d been laying in bed for four hours now. The tossing and turning wasn’t going to improve. I marched into my closet and pulled out my sneakers and some comfortable running clothes. My rubber soles beat a rhythmic pattern as I set off down the sidewalks toward the main streets. The unnatural glow of the streetlamps cast an orange haze on the compulsively manicured lawns and flowerbeds. Turning towards the freeway bridge, I cut across a dirt field, praying I wouldn’t get fine dirt in my socks. The freeway bridge loomed ahead, a dirty metal deathtrap dangling over the four-lane highway. I chided myself in my head for being so risky. Anything could happen to me running alone at night, exhausted and vulnerable; I’d be such an easy target. I squinted at the cars on the road, whizzing under the bridge. Taking a deep breath, I readied to ascend the stairs two at a time–and promptly swung my hand forcefully into the stair rail. Hissing in breath, I looked down where a long gash had formed just above my wrist.
“Clumsy!” I muttered.
A nearby crunch of gravel commanded my attention. I looked up from the crimson glaze now seeping across my hand and immediately stiffened in defense. A haggard man stood before me, seemingly appearing from within the thin night air itself. He smiled gently, before speaking strongly to me.
“Do not fear, young one. I have sought you for many years now to give you your message. It is my birthright to deliver it, as it is yours to hear it.”
Arching my brow, I responded with a skeptical “Oh?”
“Indeed”, he replied, bending to one knee, his long hair sliding down his face in a silvery salute. “For years you have felt you were unique and special. Though the world has convinced you otherwise, deep down you cannot deny the truth. You hold incredible powers, by virtue of your bloodline”.
“And what bloodline is that?” I inquired.
“You are the true born moon heiress, milady”, he declared.
I then did what any sensible person would do.
I laughed until tears came.
Labels: Novel 3