The Lost Boy (Sequel to The Lost Realm)

Chapter Four

I feel my body grow rigid. What the hell is that?

The cloud comes closer and closer, growing darker with each passing second. It moves like a wave of the ocean, but flows like a shadow.

I force myself to focus back on the ceremony. Hook has started his vows, and all around me I hear sniffles and occasional aww's. I try to listen to his speech, but my brain shuts it out.

"Tell them," part of me whispers, "Sam can stop it."
I know I should say something. Yet worry pulses through my veins. What if it's nothing? What if I ruin my sister's big day because of nothing?

I search the minds of the villagers, looking for anyone who's noticed it too. Surely someone must have?
But from who I can see, and what minds I'm able to decipher, there's nothing.

My eyes go upward. The cloud is almost here.
I squint and try to see what the cloud is. I'm not expecting anything besides ash or air, but naturally it can't be that simple. The cloud isn't a cloud, it's a flock of birds.
They are close enough now I can make out their flapping motion, and the dives and turns of their formation.

"Now," the same part of me whispers, "say something now."

I frantically glance at the dark mass. There isn't much time left.

Drawing in a deep breath, I begin to shout.

"Everyone run! Hurry we don't have much time!" I point to the birds, but when I turn back everyone is frozen in their seats. Everyone, especially Sylvia and Hook, is giving me confused glances. The entire ceremony has come to a halt.

"The birds, they're almost here!" I say urgently. The mass was above us now, quickly moving downward.

"We need to go now, hurr-" But it's too late. The birds are attacking.
I jump off the gazebo and try to move across the grass, but it's no use.

They circle around me, clouding my vision with darkness. I try to listen for my family, but the howling of the wind is too strong. My breathing becomes faster and faster as the amount of oxygen lowers. How did these things get here? And more importantly why hasn't Sam stopped them?

The howling intensifies, and the speed of the creatures increases, completely shutting off my air supply. Then, they're gone. Not a trace of them. They'd vanished as if they were nothing.

I'm sitting in the soft green grass, gasping for air. I look around me, expecting a scene of destruction. However, what I see is far worse.

The entire wedding is staring at me, their faces full of horror. No one has moved an inch since the attack. An eerie silence sits in the air, broken only by curious murmurs from the villagers below.

"She's insane," One of the villagers thinks.
"She's did this to ruin her sister's day," Thinks another.
"Something is deeply wrong with her," Another one mentally speaks.

What have I done?

I slowly turn my head to look at the ceremony, and just as I thought, they are giving me shocked glances.

I move my hand in order to get up, but I don't feel soft grass, I feel paper. I quickly turn to see what I've touched.

Lying next to me is a neat, soft white envelope. I carefully pick it up and turn it over, looking for some sort of identification.
On the front, written in the same handwriting as the message I received months ago, is my name.