Dawn Of The Dark Dynasty & The New Inhabitant

Chapter Six

The Earth Dragon

Shawn woke up with a jolt, only to be startled by the sight of dark tree branches clawing at him. He quickly sat up and found himself lying in the middle of a forest.

"What the hell... How did I end up here?" he muttered while scratching his head in confusion. His eyes darted around in search for something.

"Huh? Where did she go?" the boy wondered aloud after finding the woman was nowhere to be seen.

He was certain she had whisked him away before he fainted. Did she abandon him here in unfamiliar woods for the wild animals to do the dirty work? The mere possibility of that thought scared him shitless. The forest was too silent for comfort and the darkness of the night wasn't helping at all. Also, the wind whispering across furthered the eeriness.

All of a sudden, a twig snap alerted the boy. Rustling sounds soon followed after and they were rushing to his direction. Shawn shot up to his feet in great alarm. Was it some wild animal?

Just then, a dark silhouette zipped past within the trees. Their deep pants ascertaining it was no animal, but a person. Was it the woman? And if so, why was she running? Was something chasing her?

Shawn hesitated for moment, his brain still trying to contemplate on the best decision. Regardless of disliking her, she was his only hope out here. So, he gritted his teeth and run after her.

Just up ahead he heard a deep masculine voice growl, "You think you can just go after my girl?"

Sound of scuffles followed and then a painful scream split through the silent night. It didn't have to take a genius to know that someone was being hurt. Was it the woman? The scream came again. Shawn got anxious and rushed to the scene.

"Ain't it a beautiful night to die?" the masculine voice growled once more.

"No! No! Hey! Hey, stop!" Shawn shouted at them and madly dashed into a small clearing.

However, he had to skid to an immediate stop because another step forward was him tumbling down a cliff! After gaining his balance, he checked around and was confused to see the area was completely empty. There was nobody_ not even signs of a scuffle.

"What is this...? What's going on?" The boy frowned.

He slowly approached the cliff and glimpsed down. Although Shawn wasn't acrophobic, the sights down below sent chills down his spine. It was an endless dark abyss. Even the mere thought of its deepness got his hairs rising. For some strange reason this scenery felt too familiar.

"Do you remember now?" asked a sudden hoarse voice from behind.

Shawn jumped in fright that he almost slipped off the cliff. He spun around and saw there was another boy standing within a foot from him. However, appearance was frightening to behold. The dark-skinned kid was battered beyond recognition.

"Wh-who are y-you...?" Shawn stuttered out after finding his voice.

The battered boy remained silent and continued to glare at him. There was no malicious intent from him, but his bloodied face really scared Shawn.

"Y-you are hurt...?" Shawn said.

"Indeed," the battered boy suddenly answered indifferently.

"Wh-who did this?" Shawn's voice still faltered a bit.

The battered boy tilted his head to the side and answered calmly, "You know who."

Shawn curled up his brow in puzzlement. This was his first time meeting this battered boy. Still, there was something about him that made him feel oddly familiar.