Night Terrors

It always starts off the same. Evan is walking through a village he has never been to before surrounded by people who look just like him. They radiate the same inner warmth he does. No one notices him as he wanders aimlessly through the crowd in search of her. That is the one consistency with each dream, he is meant to find her. And each night the story progresses. Evan has come to rely on these dreams to learn the full truth about her rather than the diluted versions other people feed him.

Then he spots the girl of fire with the wild strawberry blond hair sitting in a circle of her peers speaking in hushed tones. This time when he steps closer he sees that she is very pregnant. The young man caressing her stomach is not his father. They passionately kiss.

His grandma had once told Evan and Adam the prophecy was about fighting the undeniable pull of love. While Adam bought this version of the story Evan knew better because of his dreams series. The first time he saw his mom with that other guy holding hands and stealing kisses he felt as if someone had punched him hard in the stomach. Although he had grown to expect it now it still stung to see with his own eyes what a duplicitous slut his mom was. No one would ever want to think of their parent like that, especially one they never even got to meet in reality. This is why he chose not to share what he discovered with Adam. Evan saw no reason to cause him hurt too.

She cocks her head back in laughter, "He has no clue! He keeps going on and on about us running away together. Like that would ever happen."

Another girl comments, "Athena you did sleep with him and you are carrying his child."

Athena glares at the girl, "You know why I did that. It was a means to an end. Once I have the kid I'll no longer have any use for him."

His mother's lover grins, "Then you can finally be with a real man."

"That's right baby", Athena kisses him again. "And if he gets in the way of our plans then we'll just get rid of him."

Get rid of him? Evan falls to the ground and buries his face in his hands. His chest tightens, he can barely breath. He wants so desperately to believe that she wouldn't, that she didn't. Somehow his dad still has to be alive. All the horrible things he has learned about her have weighed heavily on his heart, but to murder the man who loves her? Clearly that has to be a line even she wouldn't dare cross.

Athena shouts, "Go now! It's time." Her friends quickly run towards the far corner of the village. She balls her hands into fists by her sides as she begins chanting loudly.

Evan stands up and looks around him. You can't kill those born of fire with fire. They have a natural resistance to it. Evan knows this personally because he tried to hurt himself as punishment several times after what he did to Layla, but couldn't. This doesn't make any sense. Then a mischievous grin spreads across Athena's face as the water comes. How does she have the power of water? Oh no, she is tapping into Adam's abilities. This is why the water never touches her as if there is some sort of force field protecting her. Evan is protected too.

This is the worst part of the entire experience. He is forced to stand there captive within the dream until the dream decides he can go. All around him he sees innocent people drowning. Some are screaming. Others are pleading for their lives. And throughout it all Athena continues to smile at all the pain and death around her. Once she is sure she is the only remaining life within the entire village the water recedes.

Just when he thinks the worst is over everything bursts into flames. He is usnure if this is how all people born of fire pass on or if they no longer have the ability to resist fire now that they are dead. The smell of the burning flesh around him makes him want to vomit. There are elderly, there are young children. Athena didn't discriminate except to save her few friends by providing warning. These were her neighbors, her classmates, her elders. People she had a sworn bond to. If she could kill them, then no one would be off limits. Evan is certain his father must have died at her hands too. This is the most unsettling discovery yet.

Evan freezes as Athena's emerald eyes lock in with his own. She rubs her stomach. "You are just like me."


He wakes up in a cold sweat screaming.