Abigail held the sword out before her, her arms steady as she adjusted her stance. She narrowed her eyes at her target before bounding forward, swinging her sword across the dummy. It swung around her from the tree branch it was tied to as Abigail spun around and brought her sword across it once more. The dummy fell from the tree, landing in a heap at her feet. She smiled in approval before hanging it on the branch once more.
"I wish you would get rid of that thing," Caroline mumbled as she tended to her garden. "You're going to hurt yourself."
Abigail rolled her eyes. "Mom, I've been training with this sword for years. I know what I'm doing."
Caroline sighed. "I told your father it was a bad idea to get you into those self defense classes."
"Because it's so terrible that I, a woman, learn how to defend myself?"
Caroline narrowed her eyes at her daughter. "That's not what I'm saying."
"Why do you have such a problem with what I like?"
"I don't," Caroline snapped, turning back to her garden. "I just don't know where you get it from." Caroline got to her feet, dusted off her dress, and sighed. "I just wish we had some common interests," she muttered. "I wish we were closer."
Abigail turned her gaze to her feet. "I wish you would just accept me for who I am," she mumbled.
"You're my daughter, Abby," Caroline said. "I love you no matter what."
Abigail crossed her arms but did not meet her mother's gaze. Caroline wrapped her arms around her daughter, pulling her into a hug and kissed her head. Abigail hesitated, then wrapped her arms around her mother.
"Is it heavy?" Caroline asked. "The sword?"
Abigail shrugged. "It's not too bad. You get used to it."
"Well, at least I don't have to worry about my only daughter getting kidnapped. You could kick anyone's ass with that thing."
Abigail smiled. "That's the plan."
Pierre hurried out the back door of the house, his face white and his expression frantic.
"We need to get out of here," he said between breaths.
"What are you talking about?" Caroline asked.
"The Shadow People... They're coming..."
"The Shadow People?" Abigail echoed.
"Pierre, what are you talking about? The army-"
"There is no army, Caroline," he hissed. "It's all over the news."
Around them, the sky began to darken into unnatural shades of dark greys and purples. A dark haze shrouded them from the light of the sun.
"Get into the car," Pierre ordered his wife and daughter.
"Dad-"
Pierre pushed the two women towards the road. Abigail tripped over her own feet as she hesitated, turning back to grab her sword on the ground.
"Where are we going?" Caroline shouted to him. "Are you crazy?"
"We're leaving the city," Pierre said as they climbed into the car. He turned the key in the ignition and the car purred quietly to life.
"We can't leave with nothing," Abigail started, but Caroline's screams interrupted her. Through the windshield, she could see a pair of golden eyes.
Panicked, Pierre stepped on the gas and the car lurched forward, knocking the creature to the ground.
"Pierre," Caroline started, peering into the darkness. "Headlights!"
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Under Shadow
फैनफिक्शनIn a world shared by many races of beings, a war has erupted between the Dwarves and the creatures known as the Shadow People. The Dwarves, having driven the Shadow People from their ancestral home, forced the Shadow People to resort to violence, th...
