"The Fighter's Crystal" Book Preview + Pre-Order Link

Down below is Chapter 0-3, free for you to read! If you are interested in the story, you can pre-order the eBook now on Amazon. Link: https://a.co/d/9VKwKuV

Important Note:

This is a book preview. This preview is not formatted like the final book will be. (Since this is a blog post!) Small changes may still occur before the final release on March 3, 2026.

All rights belong to AK Lukacs.

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Date: 

March 20^th, 5086 A.E.D. (After Earth’s Death)

Planet: Colinia

Chapter 0: The Murder of William Ruthford

  “There’s nothing here, William.” A young teen stated, brushing his thick hair out from his face. Kneeling on the plastic grass, he moved a few of the fake grass blades with his hand before flashing his light towards the house. But all he was greeted with was the fake grass, plastic bushes, and a dim reflection of his black shirt and pants gazing back at him from the stranger’s window. Sighing, he rose, moving away from the house while William kicked one of the plastic bushes.      

          “We probably won’t find any lost jewelry outside, Ryan,” William said. “We need to break into the house to get what we need.”

           “Wait.” Ryan started, stopping in the street. “The city is riddled with security cameras. They check them when people make reports, and if we break-in, we will be caught.”

           “Well, how else will we-“ He started before stopping in the street. There was not much down the paved road lined with replicated single-story houses, all with the same fake, plastic grass front yards. There were some plastic bushes and some plastic trees, all still in the night under the wave of motion from the stimulated shield above their heads. But under the dim streetlights down the street were two figures walking away, wearing only black clothing and a bright yellow sash visible under the lights.

“Guards,” William whispered. But before they could move, the guards turned around. 

They were caught.

“Hey, you!” one yelled at them. The two boys ran between the houses, running across the fake grass until Ryan slammed down hard onto the ground.

            “Ryan!” William whispered angrily. He quickly helped Ryan up and they darted away. They ran past the houses onto the next street over, running down the pavement until they reached the edge of a forest. Stopping, they tried to peer into the trees, but it was so dark that they could barely see past a couple of trunks. And as they peered, they could see the lights from flashlights becoming brighter behind them as footsteps raced towards them. 

            “We need to turn around,” Ryan whispered as a light became bright. 

             “It is illegal to be out at night!” The guard yelled, flashing a high light at the boys. “You are under arrest; come with us.” The other guard grabbed a silver, glowing handcuff and headed straight for them. William grabbed Ryan’s arm and pulled him into the woods.

               “Hey, stop!” the guards yelled, the sound of a Taser striking a tree. The two boys zigzagged through the woods, the darkness swallowing them whole. Blinded, the boys used their hands to feel the trunks as they went deeper into the forest. The only sounds heard were their feet hitting branches, their legs striking bushes, and the guards’ ever-fading voices behind them. After a while, the boys stopped, breathing heavily as William leaned against a tree.

               “I don’t hear the guards; I don’t think they followed,” William whispered, turning on his flashlight. With the dense trees, the light only helped him see a few feet.

               “We are inside the forest.” He whispered, turning to William with wide eyes. “What have we done?”

               “Don’t worry about it.” William brushed it off. “We will return in a bit and try to go home.”

               “If we can find our way back!” Ryan whispered. “Why did I agree to help you with this? We could’ve just bought the necklace, and then you could’ve just said you stole it.”

               “How will I get to join the cool group if I don’t follow through with the dare?” William turned his flashlight off, leaning against the tree. “Besides, we can chill here for a moment. Unless you’re afraid of the dark.”

               “The dark? That’s not what I’m worried about.” Ryan replied before lowering his flashlight in disbelief. “Please, let’s just go.” 

Annoyed, William put his hands in his pockets and rose when his shirt snagged on the tree. “Are you...” He hissed, tugging his shirt until it began to rip. Sighing, he pulled one last time, his shirt tearing apart as he was freed from the tree. Stepping back, he went to punch the tree when something snapped in the bushes. Stopping, both boys turned to each other, holding their flashlights tightly as they shined them between the trees.

               Nothing.

               “Hello?” William asked. Only silence replied. He stood firm, tightening his grip around his flashlight as he glared towards the trees. “I heard you; I know you’re out there.”

               But still, nothing. Moving back slowly, both boys held their flashlights up and continued to move into the forest. They weaved between the trees, their flashlights barely showing them a path. After some time, Ryan began to squeeze his flashlight, arms tensing up as he stopped by one of the trees.

               “William,” he started, his jaw clenched. “I should have never, ever agreed to this.”

               “Relax, we are almost-“

               “We are lost!” He screamed, slamming his flashlight hard on a tree, the pieces breaking off and scattering across the ground. His eyes stayed on the ground, the light going out as William moved his flashlight onto the broken pieces.

               “Tisk-tisk.” He shook his head, moving his flashlight up towards Ryan. “Keep this up; we will be blind in these woods.”

               “Don’t joke like that.” Ryan clenched his fists, his body trembling. “We aren’t supposed to be out here at all. And now we have no idea where we are going.”

              “Look, worse case, the shield will lighten up for daybreak, and we can climb the trees to see where we are. We just have to get through the night.”

Taking a deep breath, Ryan nodded before leaning against a tree. William moved beside him, sitting by the trunk while scanning the area with his flashlight. There wasn’t anything besides their light reflecting off some of the plastic of the trees. Pointing his flashlight down, he watched as Ryan grabbed some of the pieces of the broken flashlight, trying to put it back together again.

               Snap. Jumping up, William dropped his flashlight, the flashlight bouncing off the ground by Ryan’s feet. With shaking hands, Ryan grabbed it. Fumbling with the flashlight, Ryan pointed it toward the trees.

               “Someone is out there.” He whispered, just as a figure emerged from between the trunks.  It was a woman with pitch-black hair and a face paler than paper. Her eyes were a deep red, and her body was covered in dull armor and black chained sleeves. The armor covered her hands, hands spotted in black and white.

               Ryan screamed. The light from his flashlight wildly darted from tree to tree as he darted into the darkness, leaving William alone.

               With Ryan having his flashlight, William tried to run, only to slam himself to another woman. On the ground, the red-eyed woman lit a branch on fire, the smell of burning plastic burning William’s nose. The flickering lights allowing William to see the other woman staring down at him. Unlike the red-eyed woman, this woman’s eyes were vibrant purple, contrasting her ghostly face. She wore the same armor the other woman wore, except her hands were not spotted; they were all black. William could only stare, Ryan’s screams echoing in the distance.

               “He can’t leave,” the red-eyed electric voice said. “The other boy ran off. Soon, those fighters will be here.”

               The purple-eyed woman looked uninterested in the boy, speaking with a deeper, yet still electrified, voice. “We will need to leave, but our mission isn’t over. The girl we seek is nearby. We must watch her.” She moved her eyes back up to the red-eyed girl. “Shamarhar-e.” The woman ordered. The red-eyed woman came forward, tossing the fire to the ground while forming a rope of thorns in her hands. The boy screamed, and as the smoke rose, the boy’s vision went black.

Chapter 1: Yellow Eyes

When the school bells rang, the doors flew open in the high school hallways. Teenagers rushed out from the doors with their tablets in one hand and cell phones in another. They squeezed their way through the stairwell, some not even looking at their feet as they scrolled through their cellular device. It was the end of the school day, and most students didn’t want to linger a second more than they had to.

            Minus one student, with her hood over her head sitting at a desk. Her wavy brown hair ran past her shoulders and onto the desk, where her tablet was currently open. Her fair skinned finger slid across the screen, turning a page in the eBook on her tablet. Beside her was a grey stylus pen, one she picked up and, with a click on the side of the pen, was able to begin highlighting a section in the text. With another click from the sidebar of the pen, she was able to begin writing down notes on the margin of the text. 

Law 8.1a: All persons from the starting age of 5 are required to attend the public school system. All persons must attend the education system until they have reached the graduation requirements from the secondary level of education OR they have reached the adult age of 20 years old.  The child must be 5 years of age before the first of August. Children born on and after the first of August will attend school the following year.  If the student is in juvenile detention, the student will continue their education through the prison system until released back into the regular school system OR they complete their graduation requirements inside the detention center.  Online availability is allowed for medical reasons only, including individual medical reasons or pandemic medical reasons.

Note: this is the beginning of the education laws.  Everyone is required to attend school.  This is why I started school at 6 years old…. Being born at the end of the year.  Online school for medical reasons only. (EX: long hospital stays, per teacher.)

  “Cassidy, what are you doing?” A voice asked.

          Cassidy stopped taking her notes, looking up to the entrance of the classroom. Standing there was a girl wearing a bright pink shirt, blue jeans, and had her wavy brown hair pulled back in a bun. She looked identical to Cassidy, being her twin, minus one part: their eye color. Her sisters’ brown eyes, with small specks of gold, shined against her fair skin. Cassidy moved back to her tablet, turning it off. As she did, her golden-yellow eyes stared back at her in her reflection. “I was taking notes about the laws.”

            Her sister sighed. “Cassidy, you’re sixteen.”

            “And I take my exam next week, Mikayla!” Cassidy slid her pen into the tablet’s pen pocket before closing the cover over the screen. She got up from her seat, walking over to the door.

            Mikayla raised her eyebrows. “You have been studying for this since we’ve entered high school, what, almost two years ago?”

            Cassidy stopped at the doorway, raising her tablet in front of Mikayla’s face. “And I had to get a new tablet because Jake accidently grabbed mine, took it to his job interview, and broke it.” She gripped the tablet, holding it closer to her. “All my notes got deleted and I have to start over.”

            Mikayla sighed, closing the classroom door. “Cassidy, what is law 105.c?”

            “That one is part of the prices on grown and stimulated food have to stay at a locked price. Part c is the disclaimer for junk food like candy and chips, which may fluctuate in price no more than 10% of the healthy food options.”

            Mikayla patted her shoulder. “Cassidy, you are like a walking encyclopedia. You will be fine, I promise.”

            Cassidy walked down the now empty hall, minus the janitor sweeping the floors. “How did you know that law to ask me?”

            Mikayla shrugged. “I made it up.”

            Cassidy stopped in her tracks, mouth wide open. “Mikayla!”

            Mikayla giggled. “What? It proved my point.” She started, before eying the board by the stairwell. Confusion crossed her eyes, before they became wide. “William died?”

            Cassidy turned around. By the stairwell was an electronic board that would blast out messages for students to see. Usually it’s information about dances, clubs, or reminders of rules or exams, but today it had a picture of a boy. His thick, black hair covered part of his brown eyes. He grinned in his photo, but the words underneath is what made Cassidy’s eyes grow wide.

Memorial Service for William Ruthford

Saturday, April 21^st

Card signing in office for family.

            “What happened to him?” Cassidy asked.

            Mikayla was already on her phone, pressing a purple icon leading to a messaging board. The messaging board was a social media app people loved to use, especially teenagers. They were able to share videos, pictures, and their opinions onto the app. Mikayla had over a thousand friends and followers on there, while Cassidy tended to stay off the app. She tried it once, but after being made fun of over her eye color, she deleted her app. Scrolling through, Mikayla shook her head. “Apparently he was out at night last night.”

            Cassidy gasped. “What? Why?”

            “Doesn’t say, but probably being an idiot.” Mikayla shook her head more. “The rest sounds like rumors. Half of the comment feed, from what I am seeing, is sympathy while the other half is calling him names.”

            Cassidy shook her head. In the Underground, no one was allowed to go into the wooded areas. The fake trees were close together, making the forest dark. And deep inside the woods were openings to caves, caves that would allow Dark Creatures to come and go from freely. But with the trees close together, the creatures tended to stay inside the forest. Not only did the woods make it harder for most Dark Creatures to maneuver between the trees, but it was so dark that the creatures who are in the woods tend to stay put. Most of the time. 

            Cassidy glanced up at the picture of William crossing the screen. He was able to maneuver the woods. Something many people struggled to do. And while in there, something killed him. 

            Cassidy began to walk down the stairs, her sister beside her. “What got him in the woods?”

            “I don’t know, and I highly doubt the news will release what killed him. I wouldn’t over think it if I were you.”

            Cassidy breathed out. The stairs led them to one of the exits to the school, Cassidy opening the door to head outside. The yard of the school was filled with fake grass, plastic trees, and metal benches. Above them was a blue simulated sky, one which if Cassidy looked closely enough, she could see faint white lines move up and down the shield above their heads.

            The high school was in the center of town. The middle school was across the street, and the elementary school a few buildings down. These buildings consisted of an urgent care to take care of any sick students during the school day and a virtual art academy. Cassidy had entered the building before- the building has several classrooms in them with virtual screens. She took classes over there one summer to learn how to draw on the glass tablet.

            If she turned right from the high school and passed the elementary school, she would enter the town with the courthouse, the bank, the mall and factories. Past the center of town are apartment buildings for those renting. Then all around the outside of the town there were homes. Homes that anyone who could save up enough points on their card could purchase.

            The homes are separated into four wings: North, East, South, and West. North Wing held fancier, two story buildings that people tend to use points to buy together. They are considered more like a penthouse where all the young 20-year-olds move in together to party, since they can’t be out at night and move around.

            In the East Wing and West Wing, the housing was smaller and closer together. The houses all were cookie cutter homes: one story, a simple door in the front with a kitchen window to stare out into the front yard, and two windows on the left of the door where someone resting in their bedrooms could look out. There was a back door and another window; on average, these houses had three bedrooms. The yard was smaller, and the houses were closer together, but people tended to share the backyards to allow the children more space to play.

            In the South Wing, the houses are two stories and a bit larger. The yard space between the homes was more spread apart. No one had fences, so there was room for kids to play sports with each other.

            Cassidy headed towards the South Wing.

            It took about fifteen minutes to leave the town and enter the neighborhood to the two-story cookie cutter homes. These homes were simple: single colored, small front porch, and two stories. Nothing fancy was with them. But when Cassidy got to a little off-white two-story home with a grey front porch, she stopped. The walls were solid in one color without any textures on them, being the homes were made of plastic. The blue front door was the only pop of color present on the house. But it was her home.

            Following Mikayla, she entered through the front door, walking right into the living room. There was a large L-Shape couch in the room, with a brown coffee table and a TV in the corner of the room. To her left was a set of stairs that led to the second-floor balcony and rooms. In front of her was an open doorway leading into the kitchen and the dining room.

            There, her mother was setting the table with plates and forks. Her hair was thinning out, being in her forties. Her greying hair was tied behind in a bun, her slim body moving effortlessly around the dining room. When her mom saw Mikayla by the doorway, she smiled. Her wrinkles were beginning to crease across her face, but her brown eyes were shining bright with joy.

            “How was school today?” She asked.

            Mikayla shrugged. “Wasn’t too bad, except one of our classmates died.”

            Their older brother popped into view from the dining room. He was a couple years older than them and had dark brown short hair and brown eyes.  He looked at Mikayla confused, but curious. “Who?”

            “William Ruthford.”

            His eyes sunk down to the floor. “Oh.”

            Mikayla raised an eyebrow, crossing her arms. “Did you know him?” She asked.

            “I actually did.” He moved to the living room, sitting down onto the couch. “We were in the gaming club after school on Mondays. We played for years. He joked about how he was coming to my graduation in a couple months.”

            Mikayla's eyes softened. “I’m sorry, Jake.”

            Cassidy set her tablet bag down on the table by the front door and came over to her brother, sitting down beside him on the couch. She placed her hand on his back. “You okay?”

            “Yeah, I’ll be fine, I just wasn’t expecting that.” He stated, before turning to Cassidy. “Did they say how he died?”

            Mikayla chipped in before Cassidy could open her mouth. “He went into the Dark Forest and was killed in there.”

            Jake's eyes went from sorrow to disappointment. “That’s stupid.”

            “I know.” Mikayla replied. Cassidy could only nod her head.

            Their mother walked in, a large plastic stirring spoon in her hand. “I better not ever hear any of you guys going into those woods.”

            “We won’t.” They replied.

            Cassidy leaned back onto the couch, watching as her brother turned on the TV, but Cassidy zoned out. Her mother was cooking in the kitchen, and Mikayla pulled out her phone and was scrolling mindlessly across her social media. Cassidy glanced out to the window, listening to a child laughing outside. He was playing with a soccer ball with another kid, both enjoying being in the grass. Watching them was a cloaked figure, with its hood covering its face. Cassidy tilted her head, but before she knew it, the figure was gone. A young woman with black hair ran to the kids, lecturing them to come inside for supper.

            Cassidy turned away from the front window, grabbing the remote from her brothers’ hands.

            “Hey!”

            Cassidy narrowed her eyes. “Anything but the news.”

            Jake grabbed the remote back. “Fine.”

            They began to watch a movie about a mystery murder.

Chapter 2: The Exam

Punch. Cassidy’s fist struck against a punching bag, watching the bag swing back and forth on its chain. As it approached her, she jumped in the air and kicked it with the side of her foot. It flew towards the ceiling; the only thing saving it from taking a trip across the room was the chain. Making a tight fist, Cassidy took a position as the bag approached her, bracing her legs, ready to fight. When the bag was near, she punched it with all her might as she let out a frustrated scream.

          She stepped back and out of the way, beads of sweat pouring down her face as she tried to catch her breath. The bag swung to where she once stood but moved away again like a pendulum.

           The room she was in was medium size. There was a punching bag she was using, a treadmill, and a large, square mat where she could practice doing flips. Her father was adamant about having it inside the house, using one of the bedrooms as a gym space for everyone in the family to use.

Cassidy watched the bag swinging slow down. She was frustrated by the university law entrance exam. If she didn’t pass it, she didn’t get into the school. And with there only being one university in the underground, it would mean she wouldn’t get into college. 

          Calming down her breathing, Cassidy walked out of the exercise room and into the hallway. The hallway wasn’t long; there were three doors across the length of the wall. The one by the stairwell was Jake’s room, the middle door was the bathroom, and the farthest door down the hall was hers and Mikayla’s room. The only room across from them was the gym. Besides the gym, the railing to the balcony led to the stairwell and facing towards the living room.

          Hearing laughter, Cassidy wandered over to the balcony to see Jake and Mikayla on the couch. The TV was on, playing a comedy TV show. They laughed at the jokes, popcorn falling to the floor.

They were lucky; Cassidy being a twin. In the underground, due to limited resources, parents are only allowed to have two successful pregnancies. This means for most people, they can only have two kids. For most people, if they want more than two children, they will have to adopt. After two pregnancies, both parents receive a shot that will make them infertile so no accidents could happen.  But because Cassidy was a twin, she is lucky to have two siblings instead of one. She smiled. 

           As she began to head down, she glanced over to her parent’s door. It was right at the end, where the stairwell meets the second floor’s landing. The door was closed, not that anyone but her mother slept there. Her father was always gone.

           Beside the door was a large photo. It had her mother, with her hair curled and longer than it was now. Her brother was younger, being fifteen instead of eighteen. His hair was longer, covering half of his face in the photo. Mikayla and Cassidy were only thirteen, wearing identical red dresses with hair curled and back behind their heads. And her father, who sat by their mother, was wearing a light blue athletic t-shirt and black stretchy pants. His hair was freshly cut, and his yellow eyes were gleaming towards the camera. On her father’s wrist was a silver bracelet with a light blue crystal sandwiched between the silver rims of the bracelet. These rims wrapped around the crystal almost fully, except at two ends, where it appeared to have pieces that clicked together to keep the bracelet in place.

            Her father was a fighter. Fighters are chosen when they fight an unnatural creature, and the Masters create the crystals. If a person earns a crystal, they are legally required to be a fighter for the rest of their life. And they must live at the Master Huts. This is where her father primarily resides. She might go months without seeing her father depending on how much activity there is. They must have the green light to be able to visit family.

           A lump formed in Cassidy’s throat. The last time she saw her father was five months ago, and with all the attacks in the underground, Cassidy knew her father probably wasn’t coming back anytime soon. Eyes blurring, Cassidy returned to the hallway and rushed back into the gym. Despite her body aching, she began to punch the bag.

          She punched it and punched it repeatedly. Each punch was more forceful than the last. If only her father could come home, even for a day. She screamed as the bag swung back and forth until it didn’t.

          Standing there, Cassidy tried to catch her breath. Holding onto the bag was her brother, Jake, whose brown eyes were filled with concern.

          “Cass, are you alright?” He asked.

          “I’m fine,” Cassidy stated, lowering her fists. “I want the bag back.”

           Jake raised an eyebrow, glancing at the bag. Instead, he reached up and unhooked it from the chain connected to the ceiling.

          “Hey!” Cassidy protested.

          Jake tossed the punching bag to the floor. “Cassidy, you’ll do fine on that law exam.”

          “UGH!” Cassidy yanked open the door. “It’s not about the exam.”

           Jake followed her out of the gym and back to the hallway. “Are you sure? Because last I checked, your exam is tomorrow morning.”

            Cassidy turned around. Her brother was buff and tall, and his hair was very short. He was always the unserious one of the three.

            Cassidy returned to the balcony, but the TV was off, and Mikayla was out of sight. “Where’s Mikayla?”

           “She went with mom to deliver medical powder. Mom told me to check on you because you sounded frustrated.”

Cassidy sighed. Her mom was a chemical medicine doctor. She made powders that are used to heal wounds, as well as liquid medicine to help with illnesses. It’s a complex field to get into and pays well for its title.

             Cassidy looked back to the family portrait, her eyes saddening. Jake stood beside her, looking at the picture.

“Either one of two things: you miss my hair or Dad.”

“What do you think?” Cassidy grumbled, crossing her arms. 

  Jake put his arm around her, only to take it off quickly. “Cassidy, you are soaked!”

  Cassidy looked down at herself. She was coated in a layer of sweat. “In my defense, I was working out.” 

“Not long enough for that much sweat!” Jake signed. “Keep working out like you do, and you will end up as buff as dad.” 

Cassidy laughed, dropping her arms. “That might be a good thing.” She grinned, before turning back to the picture of her family. As she did, her smile began to fade as her eyes dimmed. Jake must have noticed, placing his arm back around her again. Cassidy forced a smile on her face. “Willing to brace the sweat?” 

“Just this once.” Jake softly replied, looking at the picture himself. When Cassidy looked to his face, she could see concern spread across his face. “Dad is busy and does not have permission to leave the hut.” He started, before smiling. “But he called mom the other day. He told her a lot of stuff is happening right now that we don’t need to worry about him.”

  Cassidy forced a smile back on her face. “That’s good, I guess.” She took a deep breath out. She knew it was true, but it didn’t help. “I’m going to shower.”

As she walked towards the shower, Jake leaned onto the railing of the stairs. “Hey, you will do fine. You will pass that exam and you will make a great children’s lawyer. You will see!” 

Cassidy closed the bathroom door, sighing out. We’ll see. 

The following morning, Cassidy woke up to the grey color of the shield coming through her window. The shield has three colors: black with white dots, blue, and grey. Grey was signaling the transition to being allowed out of the house or told to go in.

Stretching, Cassidy looked around her room. The room was large, with two twin-size beds, two dressers, two nightstands, and two windows. One window was between her bed and her sister’s. The other was right by her bed since she slept in the corner of the room farthest from the door. There was also a brown-colored desk with a vanity mirror on it.

            Cassidy moved her blue fluffy blanket off her bed and made it. Her sister, whose purple blanket was bundled in a ball on her bed, was already gone. Quickly getting dressed and brushing her hair, Cassidy rushed out of the room and was greeted by a blueberry muffin fragrance floating up from the kitchen into the hallway. Walking down, her mother was in the kitchen, pulling out freshly baked blueberry muffins. Cassidy's heart skipped a beat.

             “Those are my favorite!” Cassidy came in. Mikayla and Jake were already at the table, eating the first batch of muffins.

             Lauren smiled. “It’s for luck for you today!”

             Nerves swallowed the happiness that was in her heart. This was, in fact, the day that could change her life forever.

            The look on her face must have been unmistakable. Her mother put the muffins down and gave a warm hug to Cassidy. “You got this, baby girl!”

            “What if I fail?” Cassidy squeaked.

             Mikayla laughed. “Cassidy, you never fail anything. Plus, you are only sixteen. I’m not even attempting my exam until next year.”

             Jake shrugged. “I didn’t even take an exam.”

             Mikayla turned to Jake, who was leaning back in his chair. “You got a 20% on the law exam.”

             “Which is practically not taking it.” Jake bit into the muffin before sitting back up straight. With his mouth full, he spoke to Cassidy. “Out of all of us, you are the one with the most hope for law.”

             Cassidy cracked a smile. “Mikayla is going for Chemical Medicine like mom. I think she has us beat.”

              Mikayla shook her head. “Cass, don’t underestimate the work you have put in so far. It’s hard, but you got this!”

             Cassidy smiled. For a moment, the nerves went down. Grabbing a blueberry muffin, she bit into the moist, soft pastry as she felt the warmth of the muffin in her mouth and down her throat. She felt ready.

Until she walked up to the High School, dressed in her favorite hoodie and jeans, Cassidy fiddled with her tablet pen as they walked through the courtyard. Walking with Mikayla and Jake, she walked through the school building doors, her nerves rising again. Muffins didn’t sound good coming up with the nausea she felt.

 Jake turned to his sisters, placing a hand on Cassidy’s shoulders. “You got this.”

Cassidy smiled. “I think that’s the nicest you’ve ever been to me.”

 Jake put his hand down. “Enjoy it ‘cause it won’t last.” He walked away, but not before winking at her.

Cassidy sighed. “He’s going to do something drastic tonight, huh?”

Mikayla laughed. “Not if we get him first. I think we have whipped cream in the fridge. We could pie him.”

Cassidy cracked a smile. “Okay, you come up with the plan, and I will focus on passing this test.”

“Deal.” Mikayla walked away, heading to a classroom full of energetic students.

    Walking up the stairs alone, Cassidy walked past the memorial poster plastered on the electronic glass message board. Instead of the funeral date, it came across as just “rest in peace.” Cassidy stared at the board, sadness creeping over her.

   She shook her head and moved past it, walking to a large lecture hall. There were about ten rows of seating, easily accommodating over 100 students. The windows were across the wall, allowing a lot of light from outside into the room. There was a large screen at the front of the lecture hall with a teacher’s desk near it. A few students were already seated, a laptop open to a testing screen.

  A lady in all black—her skirt, dress shirt, and blazer—helped a student. Her grey hair was tied neatly into a bun, and her pink glasses stuck out like a sore thumb. She looked up to Cassidy and then frowned.

Cassidy took a deep breath. “I’m here for the law exam.”

She got up and walked over to the front of the room. “Name.”

“Cassidy Herra.”

           She typed some things on her tablet before grabbing a white laptop from her desk. “Place your tablet here. You won’t need it.”

         Cassidy placed her tablet on the desk with the other students’ belongings. Once she did, she was handed a white laptop. It was bulky and heavy compared to the tablet; however, it was meant to take the exam. There is no internet or apps on the computer; the moment it opens, the test screen pops up. It was exactly the way it was intended.

           With the computer open, the lady grumpily typed Cassidy’s name and code into the computer. Then, the acknowledgement screen appeared. “Read the acknowledgement, and you may begin.” Her breath smelled of coffee, making Cassidy wrench.

        “Okay.” She coughed out.

        The lady walked away, and Cassidy glanced at the agreement. It was long, about two pages when she scrolled. Glancing over it, most of the acknowledgement related to the test procedure and that it was an entrance exam for the program. But at the bottom, it said something she wasn’t prepared for: “If you are reading this, answer all the questions with “D."

         What.    

         Cassidy raised an eyebrow, reading it a few more times over. Unsure, she pressed “accept,” and the first question appeared.

    What would happen if someone broke into a government building?

a.     They would be arrested

b.     They would be fined

c.     They would face no charges

d.     They would be celebrated.

Cassidy sighed out. It hurt her body to press the letter D, despite the answer being A. After a few questions, she stopped reading them, answering D for every single response.

She was done in 10 minutes. The rest of the students who were there before her were still working. Cassidy turned in her computer, grabbed her tablet, and a pass to head to class. She left the room wondering if she made a mistake.

Chapter 3: Changing Tides

It takes several weeks to receive the scores from their exams, and these weeks were dragging. Laying on the couch, Cassidy was mindlessly flipping through the television channels before groaning. Her mother keeps telling her that “the results will be out sooner than you think,” which makes the days even longer. She tried drawing on her tablet, reading books, and getting ahead on schoolwork. She would think hours had passed, but only ten minutes did.

So now she was watching TV, her mind anywhere but where she needed it to be. As the phone rang, Cassidy jumped up, hearing her mom pick up the phone. Every house in the underground has a main, landline phone. This is provided in every home and free of charge, unlike the cellular devices. It’s mainly for reaching citizens about warnings, but the government and schools communicate through the main line as well about other topics.  

  “Hello?” Lauren asked before turning to her eager daughter. “Cassidy, it’s for you.”

  Cassidy ran forward, picking up the phone. “Hello?”

  “Hey!” A familiar voice said.

  “Jen?” Cassidy tilted her head, confused. “Why are you calling on the landline?” 

“Oh, because my parents are trying this new rule where we have to give them our phones while we are home. We can only have them when we leave the house.” 

Cassidy gasped. “Why?” She asked, exaggerated. 

“They say they saw some health expert on TV recommend it, but I think they want to torture us.” Jen chuckled to herself. “Anyways, I was calling because I was wondering if you wanted to hang out today? Sasha needs to stop by Mr. Pike's first to get her spot for her radio show, and then we plan to go to the mall. If you want to come, it would be me, Taylor, Sasha, and you.”

  Cassidy almost dropped the phone. “Mom!” Cassidy yelled out.

  Lauren, being in the kitchen, raised her eyebrow. “Cassidy, I am right here.”

  “Okay, can I go to the mall with Jen, Taylor, and Sasha?” She asked.

  Lauren blinked for a moment. “Please don’t “okay” me, but yes, you may.”

  Cassidy squealed. “Thank you!” she stated before turning to the phone. “The answer is yes, yes, I can come!”

  “Wow, you sound excited.” Jen laughed. “Great, we’ll be over in about thirty.”

  “Yes, I am going stir-crazy waiting for my test results,” Cassidy stated.

  Jen sighed. “Cassidy, only you would worry about getting a perfect score.”

  “But I could’ve failed.”

  “And you could try to be more positive,” Jen stated before laughing again. “I’m sorry. My little brother just got pie filling all over him. I got to go, but I’ll see you soon.”

  It couldn’t come fast enough. Cassidy jumped up from her chair, running to the door. Opening the door, Jen smiled at her. Jen had brown, straight hair that ran down her back.  She always had it in a braid, whether her hair was pinned or down. Today, it was down. Behind her were two other girls. 

One girl was Sasha. She had dark skin with deep brown eyes that always appeared to sparkle when light touched it. She also had thick. Curly hair that would lay across her face. She always wore black jeans but would pair it with a vibrant shirt. Today, her shirt was neon yellow.

The other girl was Taylor, who had black, straight hair. She was tan and had light brown eyes. She would wear a baggy long sleeve shirt and shorts. Her hair always covered part of her face, but when she saw Cassidy, she moved part of her hair out of her way and smiled. 

  Sasha jumped forward before Jen, yanking Cassidy out of the house by her arm. “Ms. Herra, we’ll bring Cassidy back to wallow over test scores later, okay?”

  Lauren waved her hand to the four girls. “Okay, have fun!”

  Sasha closed the door, grinning ear to ear to Cassidy. “It’s time to party.”

  Cassidy’s eyes widened in horror. “Party?”

  Jen gently nudged Cassidy off the porch of her house, and the girls stepped down to head to the street. “Don’t worry, we are only heading to the mall.”

  Heading to the mall was the same as heading to school. They passed the cookie-cutter houses and small buildings. But when they got to the high school, they walked past and toward the center of town.

  The town was FILLED with plastic marble. A courthouse had white and grey marble pillars before its doors. Beside the courthouse was the bank. The bank was made of a black and gold marble backing and pillars along the front of its doors. And several small businesses lined up between the buildings. Many small companies were identical: beige walls, glass doors, and a red roof. However, their signs made them unique. Drawing workshops, tattoo parlors, piercing places, candy shops, among other types of stores. 

There was also the plant house. The plant house was a tall building with several large windows. From the windows, those passing by could see vines, pots of plants, and on the lower levels, rows of soil in large planter boxes. Sometimes, the planter boxes were filled with large plants, while other times they were empty. This building was where all the vegetables and fruits were made. This was the only fresh food made in the Underground – the rest were simulated food created from a machine. This was produced in another building out from the city. 

  Past this was the news store. The news store was two small buildings located right outside the mall. This was a radio building where the news was broadcast daily via radio and television. You could also visit the store next door to create your radio show. This is where the girls entered.

  Passing the glass doors, small children were playing by the green screen, their mother scanning their cards to an old man. This man was in his 60s, with his hair fading. He was a bit chubby, but he always had a smile on his face.

  “That is all, miss. Is there anything else I can help you with?” He asked.

  The lady shook her head. “No, thank you! Their father will be thrilled.” She turned to the little children. “Let’s go.”

  “Awwwww.” The kids cried but got up and walked past the girls and out the door. As she did, the old man looked up, grinning from ear to ear.

  “Well, who brought in my storytellers?” He asked.

  Sasha ran up excitedly. “Mr. Pike, can I reserve for this Thursday at 4PM? I need to film for my audition at the film academy.”

  “Oh, of course, Sasha!” He got on his tablet, tapping the screen a few times. Before he could say the words, Sasha pulled out her card and had it scanned.

  In the underground, everyone had a card. This card held your basic identification information and a bar code. This bar code was used to scan for point requests. Everyone was paid in points and traded points to buy goods or services. The bank controls the point system and payment delivery.  So, when Sasha scanned her card, the points came off her account and into Mr. Pike’s system. She, like Cassidy, gets points from her parents transferring some to them since they were too young to be allowed to work. The internship age was 16, but the legal working age was after you received your high school diploma or you were twenty, whichever came first. Children were allowed to do chores to gain points from their parents.

  Mr. Pike’s shop was Sasha’s favorite. Sasha always wanted to do a radio show, and she was preparing for her audition to go to film school so she could create her shows full-time. The only way to gain the credentials to have their show was through the school. Luckily, schools are free, but they are just very hard to get into.

  “Alright, Sasha, you are reserved!” Mr. Pike told her.

  Sasha screeched. “Thank you!”

  Mr. Pike laughed. “You are more than welcome. Is there anything else I can help you girls with today?”

  Cassidy shook her head. “No, but it was nice to see you, Mr. Pike.”

  Mr. Pike smiled. “Nice to see you too, Cassidy.” He turned to Sasha. “I will see you next week.”

  The girls left the building and turned to the giant one in front of them. The mall was four stories tall and made of glass. But the glass was strong, almost impossible to break. Inside the mall, there were several types of stores, though many of them were clothing stores. Jen and Sasha squealed as they entered one of the clothing stores the mall had.

  There, in a poster, was a sketch drawing. The gown was gorgeous—it was long, flowing, and covered in sequences of blues and greens. Its straps were made of a see-through material with small, beaded sparkles across them. It was beautiful, and under the dress, the poster announced, ‘Taylor McGordon won the dress design competition for the 5086 year.’

  “Taylor!” Sasha stated. “When were you going to tell us you won???”

  Taylor only softly smiled. “When the dress was made,” she softly spoke. “It’s a dream come true, but I wanted to see it first if that makes sense.”

  “I get that, but damn Taylor! It’s gorgeous!” Sasha replied.

  Cassidy smiled, looking up at the dress. “It’s perfect, and I can’t wait to see the final product.”

  Taylor smiled wide. “It will be at the fashion show in June if you want to come.”

  Cassidy’s eyes widened. “Of course, Taylor!”

  “Obviously,” Sasha replied.

  Jen nodded her head. “Always, Taylor. Just give us the date.”

  Taylor grinned even more. “June 21^st.”

  Jen pulled out her phone and put the date into her calendar. Cassidy could hear her phone ping, but before she could grab it, Jen began to talk. “I just shared the Calendar invite with all of you over Zofrom. We all will be going.”

  Jen, Cassidy’s best friend since elementary school, was always the organized one. She is a planner and loves math. Jen was studying to become a math teacher, though that was only shared in secret with Cassidy. Jen took her exam last month and failed it. But she’s currently studying to take it again next month. Cassidy was sure she would pass it this time.

  Flash. A light flashed through the room. Facing the door, Cassidy saw a cloaked figure standing there with a camera. This time, the figure was closer, and Cassidy could see leather gloves on her hands. Cassidy tilted her head. There wasn’t leather in the underground. The figure ran, and so did Cassidy.

  “Cassidy!” Jen called, but Cassidy ran out of the store and looked around. No one was around except regular, uncloaked people, who looked at Cassidy in confusion as Jen, Sasha, and Taylor came out behind her.

  “Cassidy, are you alright?” Sasha asked. The words were caught on Cassidy’s tongue. She only nodded her head.

  Jen sighed. “Why don’t we leave and head to the candy shop? Candy heals the soul, anyways.”

  Cassidy didn’t hesitate to begin walking. Her friends talked behind her, but she wasn’t listening. The cloaked figure was on her mind. Shaking her head, she left the mall, feeling the energy around her shift to a more positive one.

  The candy shop is in a small orange building, but the only candy available is anything with sugar: Hard candies, mostly, but there are a few soft candies, all of which have fruity flavors. And there is one candy shop all over the underground: Aunt Grutherd’s.

  Cassidy could see the store up ahead, the candy visible through the window. One of her favorites was a flower-shaped candy. It was red in the middle with a deep blue color on the petals. That was a tart, hard candy, one she loved to get occasionally. She only escaped the thought of candy when she saw another flash of light.

  When Cassidy turned around, she saw a cloaked figure behind her, slowly lowering the camera. And unlike the other times, the figure didn’t run. It raised its head enough so Cassidy could see its face: It was a woman with pitch-black hair and a face paler than paper. Her eyes were a deep red, a red that sent chills down Cassidy’s spine. Two other figures came out behind her, and the sensors were triggered – the sensors only need to sense the dark energy for 30 seconds to a minute before the sensors in the city are triggered. The alarms began to blare.

  “Sasha! Jen! Taylor! RUN!” Cassidy screamed, rushing towards the candy shop. The buildings were beginning to roll down their metal doors, automatically doing so when the alarms were triggered. As the doors closed, Sasha screamed, banging on the candy shop doors. There was nothing any of them could do.

  They were trapped with the Omnipariah. 

  With the Omnipariah rushing towards them and all the businesses shut down, the girls could only run. They ran down the street, passing the last few businesses before approaching the schools and homes. Cassidy could feel her lungs and throat burning, her muscles tired from the sprinting.

  “Ah!” Jen screamed, collapsing onto the ground. An orange eyed Omnipariah went over her, forming a black scythe in her hand. Fear ran down Cassidy’s spine. Jen was going to die. Cassidy ran over and, without a second thought, jumped into the air and side-kicked the Omnipariah.

  It was enough to startle her, making the scythe vanish into smoke.

  “You little…” An electric voice called out. The other two Omnipariah surrounded her, and before she could move, they had a hold of her.

  Shit. Try all she might, she could not get out of their grasp. The orange eyed Omnipariah created her scythe again, and this time, she lunged it towards Cassidy. Before she could, a rock was tossed into it, knocking it out from the Omnipariah’s hands. With the scythe out of her hand, it vanished into smoke again. Cassidy glanced over, and Jen, Sasha, and Taylor were throwing plastic rocks from a neighboring plastic garden. Cassidy could feel the hands tighten before one of the Omnipariah’s let her go. It charged towards the girls, who screamed while throwing the last of their rocks.

  The Omnipariah that still held Cassidy tightly tugged her forward, shoving her onto the ground. Her purple eyes glared at her with hatred. “You must die.” As the Omnipariah formed a knife in her hand, she went to lunge it at Cassidy’s chest. Simultaneously, Cassidy grabbed a rock, and as the knife stuck into her chest, she struck the rock on the Omnipariah’s wrist.

  The Omnipariah screeched, glass falling from her wrist. Moving her armor up, the crystal embedded in her skin shattered. The Omnipariah hissed. “Let’s go!”

  In an instant, the three Omnipariah’s turned to smoke. Jen, screaming, rushed over to Cassidy, holding Taylor’s sweatshirt in hand while Sasha was on the phone.

  “Where are the fighters???” Jen screamed, shoving the sweater onto Cassidy’s chest.

  Cassidy could feel a slow burn in her chest, a sharp pain with every breath. “I don’t…”

  An explosion occurred in the distance. The mall, which was still standing, had a gaping hole on its side, plastic and glass collapsing onto the ground. Over a hundred Omnipariah jumped out from the building, turning into a giant blob of mist as they were attacked by light; streaks of soft blue light coming from fighter's hands as they flew through the air, chasing after the Omniapriah.

  “There.” Cassidy mustered out as the ambulance rushed towards them. The ambulance was one of the only vehicles allowed in the underground. That and the van to move prisoners. As the medics arrived towards Cassidy, her vision went black.  

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