Light's Fright (formerly Lightwielder in China)

Last Chance (Chapter 1)

Chapter 1: Last Chance (to be included in "Powerstealer" as well) 

Its been a bad day. I'm at an airport in Danville, south of my home Chicago, east of the close town of Oakwood. A shadowhider I had been pursuing, Xiao Cao Zhu, escaped on a plane to Beijing, China, while I apprehended three others. I have to go chase after him now so I can finish my vow of destroying all remaining former shadowhiders in revenge for my slain lightwielder peers and to make sure shadowhiders will never terrorize anyone ever again. 

Every shadowhider must go, even those who have renounced their former identity, even those who were forced into it and couldn't wait to get out of being shadowhiders when their organization came tumbling down, even my older sister who saved me many times, whom I never thought I could kill, the one who will test my commitment to this vow, more than Noah, the reformed one who healed me after I almost died taking down some shadowhiders, or even Vanessa, this girl I stopped from spiraling into suicide, only to destroy her after giving her hope for a better life. 

My sister has saved me from ruthless Thalia, twisted vampire Vad, and hundreds of other killers who would have slain me for the very act of being a lightwielder. And now, the irony is I am now a killer who kills for the very act of being called a shadowhider. I sicken myself with these thoughts of the animal I have become. 

I see a girl standing not too far from where I'm sitting at my gate. Her clothes and manner of stance places her as a resident of Oakwood, the town west of here. She looks expectantly at me, as if I know her. 

I summon up a solid "Hi." It will show no recognition of her, like a "hey!" would, but it will put out that I noticed her and am in a friendly mood. 

"Zayda!" she exclaimed and rushed over to me. She had brown, extremely curly hair, and wore heavily tinted sunglasses even though it was inside and night out. She must have an eye problem or something. 

I gave her a perturbed look. "No. You must have me mistaken for someone else." 

Who is Zayda? 

"Huh. You look exactly like Zayda Fenton, my cousin. I'm Aliza Fenton, by the way. I live over in Oakwood." she put out her hand to shake. 

I shook hands with her. "I'm Savanna Stephenson." 

I don't think it will be any trouble if I give her my real name. 

"Do you spell your last name S-T-E-P-H-E-N-S-O-N or the other way?" asked Aliza. 

I answered, "I spell it the way you spelled it." 

"Ah. This all makes sense now." Aliza grinned. 

I frowned. "What makes sense?" 

"You're Savanna Stephenson." said Aliza. 

I laughed. "I know, I said that didn't I?" 

"I meant you're Carrolee's sister, Savanna. The complete mirror image to Zayda, same last name as Carrolee, that lightwielder symbol on the front of your otherwise plain white long-sleeved shirt..." 

I touched the symbol instinctively. This Aliza knows a lot for not being from Chicago or another quarantined city. 

[Note: readers, this story is set in an alternate dimension, the biggest cities in America besides Washington, D.C. have collapsed into chaotic fighting between light-controllers/lightwielders and shadow-controllers/shadowhiders. Those cities have been quarantined by massive forests that are miles long and no one is supposed to have been able to pass the borders/forest. Carrolee and Savanna have, however, and so has Xiao Cao Zhu.] 

"...you've got to be her." Aliza seemed delighted at her find. 

I broke into a small smile. "So, you know Carrolee?!" 

"Yep! She's a close friend. She's right outside too! Do you want me to..." started Aliza. 

My eyes widened. "NO!!" 

Aliza stared. Other people stared. Everyone in Danville seemed to stare. 

"Its better if you don't. If Carrolee's told you things about our life in Chicago, you may realize why." I whispered. 

Aliza sighed. "Yeah, I realize why. I know what's wrong." 

"I could use something. To wish on so I didn't have to do this. There's no chance of shooting stars crossing my way though." I said. 

Aliza chuckled. "Carrolee said something like that earlier. I can't believe she came all the way out here to wish on some airplanes instead. Why would one even want to wish on an airplane?" 

"If you ever needed a last chance really badly, you'd understand. If you had one chance, what do you think you'd wish for?" I asked. 

This stumped Aliza badly. I think I even cut all the way to the core of her accidentally. "I...I'm have too many things I'd want to fix." 

My plane number is called and all the other passengers in the waiting room get up and begin to board. There isn't very long of a line, but I've still got some time to make my last big decision. Because somewhere in me is telling me that if I go to Beijing, I'm doomed to kill Carrolee one day. 

I clutch the plane ticket I've got hard in my now sweaty hand. I could give the vow up. I really don't want to hurt my dear older sister, the one who took care of me when she barely knew me. A life with Carrolee and Aliza in Oakwood is a great temptation. But I, Savanna Stepehson, am the last remaining lightwielder; and I will absolutely NOT let my classmates have been slaughtered in vain. I'm going to Beijing. 

"Aliza, I've got to go catch my flight, but um..." I got up and hugged Aliza hard, pretending she was Carrolee, the one I REALLY wanted to be speaking to, "Please tell Carrolee that..." I sigh here and tears well up in my eyes, "that I love her, miss her, and I really wish that things could be different. And, I wish it didn't have to be this way; I wish we could have been normal and happy beyond our wildest dreams." 

I break the hug and try to go, but Aliza stops me. 

Aliza has tears in her eyes too that I see behind her tinted sunglasses. "We all wish that, Savanna. I wish that for both my cousins, Zayda and Speedy." 

"Speedy?" I asked. 

Aliza shook her head. "She's someone you'll probably never, ever meet. I haven't even met her face-to-face yet. Savanna, are you sure you want to continue on your revenge spree? You don't have to, you're not being made to!" 

"I'm making me, Aliza." I start toward the gate again, only to be stopped by her again. 

Aliza holds my hand tightly in support. "Then my friend, know that Carrolee loves you too." 

"Thank you, friend." I rush toward my gate. They're closing it by now. Please don't close it! 

I make it there late. The flight attendant gives me a dirty look, but I'm a teenager, I've gotten plenty used to it. I hand them my ticket and rush into the plane. I collapse in a window seat next to no one. Last chance is gone and not coming back. Her name was Aliza, whom I will never see again in this lifetime, says the psychic sense that has bound me to Carrolee since my first day on this earth, and screams at me not to kill her. 

It forgets that I don't have a choice about it anymore.