The first thing I recognized was the sound of a scream, high pitched and brimming with terror. The air was permeated by a musk mixed with something which could only be compared to a half rotten sickly sweet fruit. It’s a cave of some sort that looks faintly like a beehive. The scream splits the air once again, and my ears ...twitch, my body trembling with fear from something I can't quite remember.

“Please! She didn’t have anything to do with it!” I heard a nasally, probably-male sounding voice shriek.

“Another step and I’ll do much worse,” a voice hissed, the sound reminding me of a hoard of cockroaches hissing in unison. “You stole my crown—my...my CHILDREN!” A hint of sadness in her voice buried under an avalanche of rage. I feel my body tremble all on its own, trapped in some sort of slime, everything feels so confusing. I try to see where they are talking yet I can only make out a few blurs of purple and green partially obscured by a wall of rock. Another small voice on my left calls out “Help! Over here!”

I turn to see a small horse of some sort with a pale green coat. Then it turns quickly on its own back without my control to the voices at the front of the cave. A viewer, but not a participant.

“Let them go Chrysalis, this is between us.” A feminine voice states with authority. I shiver, the surrealness of this entire scenario making me feel trapped with the flow in a lucid dream. What is going on?

Chrysalis only laughs in her strange voice. “Oh no Miss Sparkle. You see, keeping them here keeps you there. Truly marvelous isn’t it? Your pathetic weak little morality! I could have any creature from your little school and it’d be the same. Isn’t that right?”

Sparkle seemed silent at that, only prompting another laugh from Chrysalis. I’d laugh at their silly names if I wasn’t so terrified, or if I could even move.

“Please Chrysalis, we can work this out. I know what it’s like to be betrayed, to lose all you’ve worked for. Your children may have changed, but it is you who abandoned them when they needed you most!” Another female voice called out, another blur of violet and purple.

“You cannot imagine the pain I have endured, but you will ...oh you will know what it feels like...To have your, your everything taken away from you!” The creature makes a weird slurping noise that makes my stomach turn. “Your affection is delicious." She snarls with menace. "Go on… tell them how much you love them. This one last time, a small mercy I never had.”

I hear a scuffle of movement, some sort of metallic clashing is followed by a loud thump as the green blur is thrown into a wall. “You dare attack me!?” I hear a shrill squeal of some sort of child.

“No please! Please don’t hurt her!”

The nasally voice calls out, only to be followed by a sickeningly wet pop as something bloody lands in front of me. My eyes linger over it for only a moment. It’s a leg, insectile and littered with holes, splattering green blood on my face as my dream body acts in sync with me to scream in horror as the world turns white.

I wake up screaming, my whole body shivering and bed soaked with sweat. I pant desperately for breath for several moments. The sight of that… thing fresh on my mind. It wasn’t even a human leg so why did it scare me so much? “Stupid Dream, just a nightmare” I grumble to myself partially out of irritation, partly out of self reassurance as I try to steady my shaking body.

Perhaps a little explanation should help. My name’s Artemis Fletcher. No, it’s not a girl’s name. Still I usually go by Arty instead. My father works in the military. Frequent moves have always been part of life with changing deployments. As much fun as it is moving around, changing schools on senior year was most certainly the funnest of them all.

(That was sarcasm)

I let out a moan, then crawl out of bed. Time to make a good first impression ...again. Checklist go! Teeth, clothes—make sure they match—nothing that states any opinions or says anything notable just to play it safe. No impression is better than a bad one. Same short lanky frame? Check. Small breakfast to avoid the nervousness nausea and ... good! Wait, short spiky brown hair needs a little comb-over. Then glasses over my blue-green eyes annnnnnddd...Perfect!

Now for walking a mile to school, or well, more of a jog at this point I reckon. I glance at the clock and very nearly do a spit-take with my cereal. “Shiii--” I grab my backpack and am halfway out the door before I can even finish my curse, slamming the door just a bit harder than necessary as I begin running down the old road. At least in the city we didn’t need a car to get everywhere. Being late to class would definitely attract attention.

Fear of social awkwardness is certainly the best of motivators.

I’m certainly not the most athletic of youth, but I figure I can easily pace a mile in 10 minutes even with the several dumbbells worth of books I’m carrying (only most of them required). I pick up a little jog wanting to be on the safe side. The chill of the morning air is rather nice in early September, at least for running anyways.

I pick up the pace a little just as I encounter a small teensy weensy problem...You see, this place is ancient which means that they aren’t as pristine as what I’m used to. Out here running on the dirt and gravel covered landscape creates a problem that quite literally hits me in the face. My vision fills with white spots as the impact reverberates from the side of my head like a crash of cymbals as I smack into the concrete head first.

I cough a little of the cursed dirt from my lungs before getting up, much more than one curse at the forefront of my mind. “Please don’t be, please don’t be…” I reach up to touch the wound. Blood. “D’arvit!” I curse in...Faerie I think that was. Weren’t they making a movie of---Stop! Focus! Analyze the situation. It’s not to bad, Panic distorts, no one is going to give it a second look out here. Pick up speed, there’s the school and--

BRRRRRIIIIINNNNNNNGGG!!!!

God I hate Mondays.

Five minutes and one wrong turn later I have gotten cleaned up and with a deep breath I open the door as slowly as possible. Maybe I can just sneak in. My eyes meet the teacher’s like a deer caught in the headlights. “Are you Artemis Fletcher?” She states agonizingly sweet as every student in class turns to look. Well, almost everyone. A few are texting on the back row—it is a high school class after all.

I clear the sudden tightness in my throat. “Arty” I correct, my gaze searching the classroom desperately for a close seat that I immediately dash to as if the music just stopped in musical chairs.

Taking a few moments to catch my breath I take a moment to get a better look at the classroom. It, like the building itself seems to have been constructed sometime after the Mayflower arriving in America, but before the space race. Instead of a digital projector we still have those old school light projectors, the ones with the transparent plastic sheets and such, but at the front is a whiteboard at least. The chairs are wooden and there is an old-timey tube TV in the corner on a black rack.

“Psssst! Hey! New guy!”

I turn to the side and see a face full of freckles and black hair with purple streaks cut around the chin. “I’m Angela, captain of the Track and cross-country team...not that there was much competition buuuut--You look like you run ...enough. Though you look like you need help not hitting the ground.”

I quite frankly don’t know whether I was just insulted or not so I take the safe option. “A little, I take it you’re quite the athlete?” I return rather lamely still trying to get my binder out for class before she goes off again as I inch myself a little further from her vocal onslaught.

Of course she is completely oblivious to my discomfort as she carries on. “We just reeeaaallly need another guy so we can compete with other schools properly, all of the boys here just want to go horse riding or some shit. So whaddya say?”

I just stare a little dumbfounded. Taking obligations so quickly could cause trouble, but saying no might offend her and I’m certain I couldn’t outrun her given this morning’s performance. ‘Saying yes might mean a jealous boyfriend.’ a small voice whispers in my head that it wouldn’t be a boyfriend but I dismiss it....Oh crap, she’s staring. Say something idiot! “I uh...give me a week? I still need to work out my, uh, schedule?” Shoot, did I finish my excuse as a question?

She visibly deflates at my statement as I realize just how far she’s leaned out of her seat. “Agreed, but don’t be late!” she says.

“Wait what?” Right as I fall out of my seat falling with a clatter of papers hitting the floor..

“Artemis?” the teacher calls.

Dammit...she distracted me. “Y-yes?” I stammer timidly pulling myself back into my seat.

“Now I know you’re new here and all, but please keep chatter and distractions down. That goes for all of you. We have a busy semester if you want to pass your exams and I intend to make sure all of you pass no matter what it takes.”

“Of course” I reply feeling the sweat drip down my back as I wither under her gaze. The first day is just so annoyingly intense, but now the anxiety was everywhere. Though I’m certainly not the biggest fan of english, I do love reading. The count of Monte Cristo certainly doesn’t seem half bad either, if a bit aged.

Next class is math, calculus to be exact. I take a deep breath, “Normal people don’t like math...normal people don’t like math.” I repeat as bit of a mantra to quell my nerdom. I enter class, thankfully not late this time. I pick a seat near the middle edge. Close enough to answer a question without the whole class turning back to look, but not in the front enough to be stared at the whole time. Brilliant! I smile a little to myself. What could possibly go wrong?

One period later….

I exit the classroom quickly as the bells rings. Why wouldn’t anyone else answer!? The whole experience going through my mind. The class was small as most advanced classes were here, but the way the teacher looked at me every time she asked a question was nerve wracking. How was I to know the first few were rhetorical!? She didn’t even waste a moment on the syllabus. Just handed it out, not hesitating to start the first lesson. I bury my face in my hands as I leave the class, purposely avoiding eye contact and moaning out my frustration as I hurry to the lunch line. “This is why you never say that phrase. Never say it!”

The cafeteria is decently sized at least, the smell of food reminding me that I hadn’t eaten a decent meal yet today. Country Fried steak and potatoes were always a safe choice, I thought, looking over my choice. I grab a tray, then make my way to a corner table. Need to see their library later too. Hopefully it has a good fantasy selection.

Just as I’m getting into my meal, my eyes catch a bigger guy who I’m pretty sure was in my last class. I try not to stare as he makes his way over to my table and sits down across from me, right behind him is another one of his buddies. I give a nervous forced smile while he looks at me curiously. All the while I try to keep eating inconspicuously, but my steak is a little firm causing the styrofoam tray to squeak.

I finally decide to break the tension. “Uh...Hi?” He takes another bite. My mind racing, him and his buddies probably just wanted to sit somewhere, and I might be in their spot? I think to myself before I’m interrupted.

“I’m Ethan, my friend here is Mike. I’m part of the Peer Leaders group and we just thought we could come and say hi.”

He certainly had a charisma about him, the type that every popular person seems to exude. I respond “Arty” briefly in return. His friend certainly seemed a bit of a shy one in contrast. Ethan appeared to have a thicker build, darker tone and a faint curl in his black hair, the kind of guy that you’d expect to see with a surfboard and a toga, while Mike seemed ...spanish? and a little dwarfed by his friends massive stature.

“So, being new here and all, what’re you interested in? We have a few organizations around here. Nothing too big but it’d definitely help you make more friends than I’m already sure you already have.”

I laughed inwardly, He’s quite a glass half full guy ain’t he? Yet even with my cynicism it was hard not to like how genuine he sounded. “I do a lot of reading, and this hyper gal in my english class seems to have already signed me up for track...”

He nods with a smile “Yep, that’s probably Angela. She’s...a bit competitive you could say. We don’t have a book club or anything, but our library is in room 101.” He finishes before extending his hand in a friendly shake. I oblige him and his friend follows suit only for us both to give a small yelp as we shock each other.

“Sorry!” I quickly reply as we both give our hands a little shake to disperse the feeling he just nods and gives a small smile.

“It’s alright,” he says, clearly thinking nothing of it as anything as he and his friend head off.

Wow I’m on such a roll today. I inwardly cringe. With two more periods to go I head off to history, some minor breathing exercises helps as I enter the room sitting in the back for once. It takes a few moments for the rest of the students to shuffle in, I get out my things as roll is called looking at the rest of the class before noticing one of the students staring at me with an awestruck expression. Their lithe frame looks rather…sickly to put it nicely, his skin unnaturally pale. He’s wearing glasses that match his dark brown hair and overall seems fairly androgynous is not blatantly feminine with his clothing and appearance. He shakes his head and turns back to the lesson.

My head suddenly starts feeling a little dizzy. I pull away shaking my head in an attempt to clear a sudden ringing noise. I turn around and pay attention; watching the lesson not wanting to get in trouble again.

“This class is divided into various sections, tardiness makes my job difficult. I encourage discussion in my class so long as it pertains to the current topic. History is not something just to learn, but to experience and understand. Questions are encouraged. If you’re unsure, just ask. There are no dumb questions, only dumb…” he doesn’t finish but the meaning but gestures vaguely towards the class who break out in chuckles.

I try to laugh along with them, but this odd wave of fatigue keeps growing, I can practically feel my body tire as my head starts to sag, I shake my head trying to focus. “I will not apologize for ruining your childhoods, but a lot of what you’ve learned growing up was censored or outright lies. Columbus never set foot in North America and was a mass murderer. The Pilgrims elicited food from the Natives at gunpoint, and Pocahontas was abducted and she died of smallpox a few years later....” He drones on, but the class sounds nice. The fatigue grows quickly my head feeling more and more like a bowling ball and I can’t stop it from hitting the desk. The world starts to blur as I start to fall asleep. Wait...what is that pink stream…? I pass out.

I’m in a white room, a steady beeping coming from my right. I look upwards, my father, a few years younger is sitting in a chair next to me. His eyes are extremely red and he looks like he hasn’t slept in days. “Ar-artemis? You okay?” I nod. “My belly...hurts.” A much younger voice replies. “Everything is going to be okay, Arty.” Viewing this memory from an older perspective I can hear that he is saying it as much to reassure me as himself.

“Where’s...where’s mom?” My voice rasps, my chest hurting from the effort. “Mommy’s….mommy’s sick Arty. She’s...going away for a while.” I look at him, my eyes growing teary. If I remembered right I had cut myself on one of the knives in the kitchen and ended up in the hospital. My father moves in close hugging me gently stifling my rush of tears as I hug him back remembering how scared I had been. I bury my head in his shoulder wiping away some of my snot on his sleeve, but he doesn’t bat an eye. Just holds me close. I think I hear voices from the hallway, but they don’t matter right now…

“I’m telling you that isn’t him! That’s not my kid! My baby doesn’t like carrots and learned how to walk last year! This isn’t him, Please--Let GO of me!” That’s...That is...well was my mother…

My father sees my concerns and only hugs me closer. My chest burns from the movement but I hug him back as if my life depended on it.

BBBRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNGGGGG!

I jump out of my seat practically falling over as I look around at everyone packing up for their next class. The class was over, and I’d slept through the entire lecture. I rub my eyes blearily, feeling very much not well rested if my racing heart and cold sweat was anything to go off of. If anything I felt like I’d run a marathon. I stumble to my feet heading to the door, nearly tripping over my own feet before catching myself on the desk. By then most of the class had already left.

I slowly grab my pack slinging it over my shoulders and lumber towards my last class. I don’t recall ever feeling this tired before. I stretch a little as I walk, already feeling the need to sleep again. I remind myself that teenagers need more sleep than other ages, but our schools start earlier and earlier out of our natural rhythms, perhaps that's an explanation?

AP Chemistry, certainly an interesting class, even if it was just for the college credit. I enter the door and look across the class eyeing my classmates...all 6 of them. I look to the teacher but he appears busy writing the usual blandness on the whiteboard so I take a seat with the others.

“All but one of us seems to be here...hopefully others will transfer in but if not we just have more time to get to know each other! Now, to get started turn to page 50 of your textbooks, the first few weeks will be boring theory work but I promise this will get a lot more exciting. Sure hope our missing student doesn’t miss anymore class because one of you will need them as a lab partner.”

I yawn, not that the class was boring but because it was hard to focus on anything when you feel like falling asleep on the spot. Just one more period…

Class doesn’t take too long, though I may or may not have dozed off a little which in itself is a challenge when there are so few students to hide among. The walk home doesn't take that long though, thankfully.

In our driveway is a car I don’t really recognize, I never bothered to study them much but it was a fancy red and looked pretty modern. That could only mean one thing. I slowly enter the house my aunt Lindsey and her latest boyfriend are on the couch watching Captain Marvel.

I have a bit of a different family dynamic. My father works in the military and is gone most days except occasional weekends. With his latest change being the reason for our move. My mother left when I was little, she had some mental health problems that she had to sort out. It’s more of an unofficial divorce as I haven’t seen her since I was nine. Her sister, my aunt lives with us because she got a job out here as a programmer for various corporations.

She was more or less my sitter while my father worked and we got along pretty well. Her boyfriends though...she went through one every few months, breakup, then get back with another guy that was the same with a new coat of paint so to speak.

“How was school?”

“It was kinda meh.” I check the fridge as we talk.

“I’ll get pizza later, your sister is at singing lessons and I’ll pick some up on the way home.”

I nod and head up to my bedroom feeling a headache spinning up, her boyfriend’s eyes follow me up with a friendly smile. They usually seem like nice guys, but maybe she’s got a bit of a dependence issue from how they tend to end up abusive and needy near the ends.

I barely make it to my bed before I collapse on it, an old spring mattress never having felt so comfortable. Sleep comes almost instantly and I settle into a dreamless sleep.

“Arty! You going to grab some dinner?”

I grumble incoherently as I stir from slumber, almost feeling just as tired as when I’d lain down the first time. The promise and smell of pizza though is certainly enough to get me to roll sloppily out of bed. I hurry down the old wooden stairs hoping there will still be some left.

I’m greeted to the sight of my little sister grumbling about something while pulling the pepperoni off her slice. My father is present, though that’s not often the case. He spends a lot of his time at the military base nearby. Usually he’s only here on the weekends, he must’ve gotten some time off with the move.

“Lindsey! I don’t want pepperoni! Do you have any idea what they do to those animals? It’s cruel and inhumane!”

“Amanda, this is what we have.” She tries to state in the most placating way she can, though with a bit of irritation. It seems like her boyfriend has gone home already. “If you don’t like what we have you don’t have to eat it, but don’t expect us all to do the same.”

I roll my eyes at her antics. For her it’s always something from the latest television show or the latest internet trend.

“Amanda...not eating meat isn’t going to stop them from being killed. It’s already dead, if you want change like that you have to work for the FDA or be a politician.”

“I don’t care! It’s not right!”

Choosing not to encourage her insanity any further I just purposely grab the biggest slice I can and take the biggest bite I can fit. I can practically see her ears steam as she picks up her de-meated slice and runs to her room.

“Artemis...that really wasn’t necessary.” My father chides while Lindsey texts on her phone. “Arguing with her will only make her more stubborn, you just have to let things play out.”

I sigh, it’s not that I wanted to make her upset, well, maybe a little. Getting caught up in the moment I guess. We’ve always been polar opposites for as long as we’ve lived. I was the book study introvert, she was the outgoing socialite. She was a performer who lived for the stage while I had social anxiety and stage fright. She also had friends no matter how many times we moved, while I just didn’t need them.

I finish the rest of my meal in relative silence, it wasn’t that I was depressed I just had better things to do than making new friends every two to four years. An occasional internet chat just doesn’t maintain the relationships we made in person. On that gloomy thought I head upstairs and head to bed and after messing with my phone for a bit I eventually fall into a dreamless slumber.

Author's Notes:

First off, thanks for taking the time to view my story!
"Chrysalis was put into stone yadda yadda comments"
Can't spill much about that escapade until later chapters...but you'll have an answer later on. I will tell you this is some time after the end of the finale, beyond that you'll have to wait.

If you liked it, or hated it I want to hear about it in the comments!
As another author once stated "Comments are a writers food pellets" or something like that.

Special thanks to "Horse Girls are Watching" for doing a review.