Chapter 1

Gone

[Zoe]

It was a brisk cool night in the summer, there were as many clouds in the sky as rivers outside death valley. All you could hear for miles around was the howling of bloodhounds and the roar of automobiles. Listening to all the sounds was as peaceful as ever, especially after a long day

’’Zoe, look out!” A voice screamed as a metal object sliced through my leg as I kicked off the ground on my skateboard. Sigh  “Of course the day just keeps getting longer.” 

“Whoa …now that’s a knife throw and a half.”  “Hey you, kid stop right there!” 

“Oh no.” In front of me was a very large crack in the sidewalk formed by a large tree, then I heard the roar of a nineteen fifty seven ford pickup swerving on the street next to me, I had no choice so I hit the crack a full speed and glided over it. The truck swerved and smashed me into the wall of a parking garage, I had nowhere to run my skateboard was crushed, but my adrenaline rose as I stared at the puddle of blood at my feet I could feel my arms trembling and I could taste the salty tears but I refused to look up, fear had engulfed me. 

“Get her Brody,” one of the men said softly, though his tone was rich with purpose. I heard a loud bang as the net cannon fired, I held up my hands to defend myself Then there was a short silence until I heard a shriek as shrill as a fox, I mustered all my courage and I opened my eyes.

 In front of me was two gargantuan copies of my hands but rather than anything else in the entire world they were made, out of blood. I looked down at my feet to see that the puddle of blood was gone just before being submerged in a powerful sensation, the sensation was unlike anything I had ever felt I felt like a demon I felt truly, inhuman, then I was filled with a rush of anger and rage, I felt a new urge to destroy the men who had crossed me, and that was what I was going to do. With my new feeling of rage and desire to destroy, I controlled my new blood hands. I tore through the truck ripping it to shreds before grabbing the three men and brutally destroying them, one of the men threw a knife at me directly slicing my face, yet what I felt was not rage but tenacity as I felt my face quickly stitching itself back together as I continued to destroy the three men crushing them into the wall of the parking garage. Then I threw one of the men up on top of the parking garage.I looked at the two men lying limply on the ground their bodies unable to withstand any more pain and destruction. I closed my eyes and fell to the ground exhausted, I felt that my strange inhumanness had decided that it had served its purpose and left me. I felt weak again and began to limp home. 

Right as I began to leave the scene I heard a quiet voice say, “come on Fenris we need to get out of here.” 

“Oh come on Xatalion we’ve been tracking her for hours, and you know that as soon as we leave that they will come to get her, we should at least follow her home.”

 

As I heard that and I began to shiver as I bolted past the parking garage through the neighborhood.I stopped to catch my breath and then, I arrived at my house to see that all the lights were off, and a broken lamp in the window, surprised I ran inside just barely noticing that there were footprints in the grass. My mouth dropped as I went through the door and saw that the inside of the house was destroyed, the white book shelves were turned over, there were big holes in the beige walls, I went into the kitchen to see a puddle of blood and written in the puddle of blood was one word, gone. I felt as though I was sinking into the depths of the ocean unable to do anything, all I could do was sorrowfully watch the light slowly fade away as I fell into the inescapable abyss. I ran upstairs salty tears flying off my face I went into my room, it appeared to be the only room in the house that was not destroyed.

 I put my face in my bed, I looked up and saw that something I had written in the third grade had fallen off the wall, I read it to myself, “My name is Zoe, and when I grow up I want to be a pretty princess and then I will never be afraid again and I will be adorable,” I read. Then, I cold and dark feeling came over me I began to shiver and shake, the feeling kept getting worse. Until a voice from behind me yelled “You need to come with us right now!” I whipped around to see two boys and two girls. 

“What why, what is even happening!” I yelled.

”We will explain la…” the guy’s voice cut off. “Look out!” He screamed. I whipped around and leaned back just in time to see a bright beam of light fly in front of my face making the dark feeling much worse. Then, I lurched forward into the dark, the feeling was sickening, my skin hurt so much it felt as if it was on fire. 

“Nooo…!” one of the boys Screamed. Then just as I was about to faint I felt hands on my arm as I was dragged into a large dark chilly hole, as I fell through the hole my vision blurred and I passed out. As I woke up I felt this weird sensation and looking over me was the four people that were at my house, they were staring right at me, then as I started to open my eyes they all let out a sigh of relief. 

 

 

Chapter 2

The Quest

[Zoe]

 

When I opened my eyes a tallish black haired boy said, “Hey you’re alive I thought you died because your heart stopped beating for a bit”.

“You’re going to scare her, sorry about the boys my name is Silver of the gem domain,”  exclaimed the girl with long whitish blonde hair, “This is Faith,” Silver said as she pointed to a girl with red hair and a messy bun in her hair, and who was light blue overalls. “These two dorks over here are Fenris and Xatalion,” she pointed to a boy with white spiky hair and a blue scar straight through one eye, and pointed to a boy with black hair and no iris in his eyes as she stated Xatalion. I blinked and two more people were standing there, “Oh yeah and this is Coco and this is Salazar,” Silver exclaimed as she pointed to a girl with cocoa hair and a boy with green hair. 

“Uhh… well I am Zoe and my parents are missing and some weird thing happened, ” I said to them.

 “Oh yeah, that, you got possessed,” said Xatalion. 

“What!” I screamed, “Are telling me that I got possessed!” I screamed again.

“Yep’” Xatalion said calmly. 

I took a deep breath’ “Ok, one thing though what is a domain and, what do you want with me?” I asked.

Xatalion opened his mouth, then closed it again as Silver gave him a death stare, 

“ That was two things but whatever, ok, a domain is the separate worlds of life for the different elements, there is a fire, ice, garden, thunder, shadow, gem, and star domain, and you are special because you lived with normal people even though you are the great descendent of the creator of all the domains, so basically you should be really powerful,” Silver explained.

“Okay….” I said “ But now can I just live here, I mean because my parents are gone?” I asked.

“Actually you have to, or they will catch you,” Xatalion said quite calmly. “But you can’t live in this domain you have to live in either the shadow domain or the gem domain, the reason for that is that you father is from the gem domain and your mother is from the shadow domain, your choice,” he said breathlessly.

I thought for a second .“ Okay, but I need to think about it,” I said to them.

“That works, but first we need to see just how powerful you are so we are going to enter you into a contest, it’s like being a gladiator but it just goes until you can’t fight and more, and the prize is supposed to be some powerful item but people are always saying it is just unstable,” Coco said to me.

I took a deep breath, “Okay, let’s do this,” I said with a very large amount of anxiety in my voice. “ Oh yeah but do we have to go through that hole that I think is a portal?” I said.

“Yes, we have to go through another portal but the contest is tomorrow so if you pass out it is ok, and it will be good practice for you because, to go on a quest you will be teleporting a lot,” Salazar said. 

“ Well let’s do this,” I said confidently.

Silver grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the portal at the edge she let go of my hand and backflipped  into the portal, then I dived inside determined not to pass out. I made it out of a portal to a bright and cheerful place I didn’t pass out, but I fell to my knees feeling very tired, “I did it,” I said weekly.

“All right, Zoe you and Coco can come to my house, we will meet the rest of you at the Gem Colosseum tomorrow for the contest,” Silver said to Faith and the boys.

“ Bye, and thanks for the help,” I said to the boys and Faith. That night I slept better than ever have slept. I awoke that morning to the sound of birds blissfully chirping, as I stood up felt my moon necklace on my chest yet today it was glowing a dangerous maroon red, I was quite surprised seeing as I had never seen it change from its unique moonstone color, as I walked past Silver’s mirror I noticed that my moon earrings were also that samre angry shade of maroon red “Hey Zoe, can you come down stairs we have to leave soon,” Silver yelled from down stairs.

“Coming, I’ll be right there,” I yelled to Silver as I ran down the stairs.

“We’re outside,” I heard Silver’s voice come through the bright blue front door.

“Got it,” I said as I ran out the door like a five year old when their parents get back from a trip only I wasn’t going to see my parents, and I would probably never see them again. As I ran outside Silver was shooting glass targets that Coco threw in the air with a shining bow that shot crystal arrows. “ Wow,” I said as I watched awestruck.

“Oh, thanks,” Silver said as another glass plate exploded in the air. Then sliver said ̈Come on we better get going to the coliseum, if we don’t want to be late for your battle.¨

 

*   * *

 

As I walked into the grand entrance of the arena I began to shake I had only fought anyone once and that time I had gotten possessed and there was not that much I was really controlling, once I walked in Silver put her hand on my shoulder. “Are you sure about this?” I asked anxiously.

“Absolutely, you will be fine,” Faith commented reassuringly.

“Yeah right I” I mumbled.

“Well it’s too late to turn back now, that’s for sure,” Silver said.

“Now today folks we have a little change in how this tournament will go, instead of having the tournament act as it usually does, today there won’t be separate rounds, after each fighter is defeated the winner will stay in the battleground and the next challenger will immediately begin the next fight, alrighty to starting off the first two challengers are Eatheba and Zoe!” The announcer screamed into his microphone.

“Oh you have got to be kidding me” I sighed as I walked onto the battlefield, the constant cheer of the crowd was causing my adrenaline to rise, this was not good, I know understood why my necklace was maroon, the necklace was warning me, and I had disobeyed.

“Come over here and fight me like a true warrior,” Eatheba screamed.

“No you,” I said as calmly as possible, even though I don’t think I could have been more scared, and then Eatheba came over to me to fight me like a true warrior. Eatheba was bull charging me, with a long sword in her hand she began to build up momentum as she swung her sword my reaction was to protect my head so I held up my arm, the sword stopped dead as it hit my hand. “Hey, you’re going to scratch my face,” I said. I had never felt pain like this the sword was still in my hand, I looked at my feet and there again, at my feet was a puddle of blood. I looked up to see my two blood hands, I once again felt like a demon, Eatheba pulled her sword out of my hand quivering with fear, 

“Say goodbye,” I yelled as I brutally smashed Eatheba into the wall of the stadium, her sword snapped and broken as easily as a toothpick. “Next!” the announcer yelled  into his mic.

The next challenger was no stronger than Eatheba, though she did have two swords, she charged me, with one hand I threw her into the air and with the other I grabbed the two swords out of the air and threw them at the woman pinning her to the wall of the colosseum.

 

***

     

The walls of the colosseum were cracked and destroyed, I was about to fight the last battle, the champion, and then in front of me stood, Xatalion. “Are actually kidding me!” I screamed.

“Nope,” Xatalion laughed as though this was some funny joke.

“Whatever!” I yelled, though I was not very confident in my chances of winning, but nevertheless I charged, my demoness was increasing, just as I was about to punch him with my blood hands, but just then he held up his hand, my hand could no longer my any closer to him. I retracted and without a second thought I clapped, once I clapped a sonic wave of energy flew at Xatalion, I could see the confidence crumbling from his eyes as he was bashed through the wall, I watched as he stood up barely scratched then I blinked and he was gone. I began to shake, the dark feeling washed over me once again, then, “Gotcha!” Xatalion yelled as he appeared above me. As fast he could he dove for me but he was too late I shoved my hands palms up into the air, I grabbed him and once again threw him into the wall. I stood there watching him stand up blood coming from his nose his left arm limp. I charged him realizing that I was about to win the championship, but then at the last second he held up his hand holding my hands in place, then weakly with he opened his other hand and yelled “Shadow cyclone!”

A large whirlwind appeared behind me dragging me in, then, Xatalion yelled “ Shadow blade storm!”

Then swords began to rain down, except they were getting sucked into the cyclone and firing out at incomprehendable speeds. The blades began slicing my face and my body. My “demonic ness” increased tenfold. Black and red began circling me. My hair flashing from black to red. My feet began rising from the ground while  the blades of shadow rushed to me.