The reflective lights shined through glass panes.
Windows.
A house was nearby.
Godric pulled his rifle from his back and peered through his scope. An old wooden cabin was ahead of them with flickering lights inside it.
“A house?” Byrd asked, crawling to Luna and Godric.
“Yeah,” Godric said. “The lights are on, so I’d assume someone is home.”
“What should we do?”
“I say we knock,” Luna said, her squat becoming less subtle. “We just tell them we got lost hunting, and ask them if we can stay the night for shelter.”
“I don’t know if you’ve ever tried that in this county, but we don’t live amongst the most welcoming bunch,” Byrd said. “Plus, walking onto a stranger's front yard with guns might not be the best strategy for us. If we do this, we shouldn’t startle the person living there. No sneaking to the door, we need to make our presence known.”
“Agreed.”
Luna moved forward through the trees, edging closer to the cabin.
“Hello?” Luna called out, trying to shout over the rain. “Hello?”
Godric kept his eyes on the windows, with his rifle back on his shoulder, watching for any movement inside. The two young men followed Luna, who stepped forward onto the front lawn. The door and porch were visible to them, but still no sign of anyone. It was not too late into the evening, so the homeowner had to be awake.
“Hello?” Luna repeated.
She received no verbal response, but Godric made out a shadow in the window, creeping past the candlelight. The figure moved away from the window toward the front door.
The door creaked open, no more than an inch.
“What do you want?” an old voice said from the door.
Luna held her hands up, showing she meant no harm. “Please, we got lost in the woods while hunting. We mean you no harm... we just need shelter for the night. It’s too dangerous for us to get home to our parents.”
No response followed.
“We have nowhere else to go―”
The front door swung open, and an old woman crept onto the porch, a double-barreled shotgun low at her hip. She aimed at Luna. “People don’t come out this far into the wild,” the old woman said, her thin gray bangs covering her forehead and draped over her eyes. “Be gone. You have no business being here.” The woman rotated around, heading for the doorway.
Byrd moved next to his sister. “Wait,” he said, his hands in plain sight. “We only look to get out of the rain. If we can even stay on your porch we’d appreciate it.”
The old woman turned back and limped to the porch steps at a slow pace. Godric eyed her odd shotgun, which appeared to have no modern modifications. “Sorry, kid,” she said. “I don’t accept visitors. This land is mine and mine alone. Now please, be on your way.”
Godric stepped forward with the siblings, but had nothing to say. Instead, Luna made one last effort to reach out to the old woman.
“Please,” Luna said, moving closer to the porch. “There are men out there. They ride with the Hazard gang. It is not safe if we continue to wander.”
The old woman raised her shotgun at Luna, her lips pursed. “Did you lead a gang to my home?”
“No, ma’am,” Byrd said, stepping ahead of his sister. “But they are out there, and we fear if we continue on, they may find us. We’ll be gone whenever you want us to go. My sister, friend, and I only wish to rest for a few moments... out of the rain.”
Rain slapped against the wooden roof of the house, the only sound while the old woman aimed at the siblings. She lowered her shotgun to her hip, examining the teenagers. Her stare locked with Godric’s eyes. He felt mesmerized by the intimidating woman, but realized her stare no longer met his.
She eyed the lockbox in his hand.
Finally, she ceased aiming her weapon and cracked her shoulders back to stretch her old bones. “Very well,” she said. “Wipe your feet off before you come inside the house. I’ll grab some towels for y’all to dry off yourselves.”
“Thank you,” the three said in unison.
They marched up the steps, following the hunched woman. She limped through the doorway and disappeared into the darkness of a hallway to the side.
Byrd led the way as they entered the cabin. The house was poorly lit with nothing but aged candles keeping the place illuminated. Everything in the home looked old. From the windows to the walls, everything appeared ready to fall apart.
Godric rotated around, examining the cracked walls and the cobwebs in every corner. He kept looking until he came face-to-face with the old woman, and nearly jumped out of his skin. Her face was pale as a ghost with her dusty glass eye staring at him.
“Here are some towels,” she said, shoving the three rags in Godric’s chest. He grabbed them with his free hand still shaking from the startle. “I don’t have any food to offer you, so I hope you kids have something for yourselves.”
Luna moved to Godric, taking the a towel for herself and Byrd. “We actually hunted a vroc earlier today if you want to share it?”
Byrd nodded in agreement while wiping his wet arms with the rag. “It can be our way to thank you for your hospitality.”
He reached for his knapsack, but his hand met nothing but his own shirt. His eyes widened. “Oh no… I think I dropped it when we… uh… fell down that hill.”
“Fell down a hill?” the old woman asked, her voice confused by what the stammering young man meant.
“Yeah,” Luna said, speaking up for her brother. “It was a rough day. In an effort to beat the sunset, we all fell down a hill. None of us noticed it while we were rushing... trying to get home.”
“Gotta be careful in these woods,” the old woman said, making her way to an old wooden rocking chair in the corner. She took a seat, rocking slowly back and forth. “Anything can kill you. From that damn Hazard gang to a ditch in the ground, anything and everything can kill you out here.”
A strange tingle ran up Godric’s spine. It might have been the house or the old woman herself, but something didn’t sit right with him.
The rain continued to beat on the house, the pane of her windows shaking with every drop. The three teens stood still listening to an odd rumbling outside the cabin.
Before anyone could say anything else, a blinding white light flashed through the home. Godric felt blind for a moment, the world flickering before his eyes. His friends were in shock, but not the old woman. For a moment, not even a second, he thought he saw the old woman disappear from her chair.
As the lightning settled, with its deafening thunder, he knew it was nothing more than his eyes playing tricks on him. The old woman remained in her chair with her expression unchanged or phased by the storm.
“Are you afraid of a little lightning, kids?” the old woman said with a crooked smile. She giggled with a cough-filled chuckle. “Storms get pretty bad out here. Once the thunder gets quieter, you all should be on your way. By the sound of it, you’ll be here a bit longer. Now... get your rest.”
She rose from her chair, limping to a nearby candle on the main table. With her cracked lips puckered, she blew out the dull flame. “Just stay in the living room and wake me up before you leave.”
“Thank you,” Luna said, using her rag to dry off her hair. “We’ll take care of the other candles.”
The hunched woman nodded, returning to her rocking chair. Her eyes closed tight, and Godric assumed the old woman stayed in the rocking chair to keep an eye on the three of them.
“Come,” Byrd whispered, waving them into the living room away from the old woman. The three teenagers sat on the cold wooden floor. Byrd pulled a handful of glow sticks from his pocket, thin lights to illuminate in the dark. He carried them in case they ever got stuck hunting during the night.
“First sign of the rain letting up, we leave,” Luna whispered, clearly shaken from the spooky old woman who continued to bare her shotgun as she slept. “One of us should keep watch
for an hour, and then we can switch. Agreed?”
Both boys nodded. Godric took a glow stick from Byrd, who appeared annoyed by him swiping one. “I’ll take first watch,” Godric whispered, cracking the glow stick. It illuminated a bright yellow shimmer. “If it stops raining, I’ll wake both of you up. If not, I’ll wake the next watcher.”
“Me,” Byrd whispered, already getting comfortable against the wooden floor. “Keep your rifle close…” His voice became even lower. “Keep an eye on her too,” he said, nodding toward the homeowner in her rocking chair.
Godric nodded to the two siblings, who lowered themselves to the floor, closing their eyes. He inhaled, keeping his rifle and lockbox near him, prepared for a long night.
***
Thunder never scared Godric before, but thirty minutes into his watch, it terrified him.
The house kept flashing from the blinding lightning, followed by an ear-popping crashing of thunder. He felt like a child, wishing his parents were here to comfort him.
Somehow, Luna and Byrd were fast asleep through the hectic storm. Godric faced the horrors of the night alone. His mind wandered while his eyes met the sleek black box. Inside, the curious rock filled with Nirvana Gold. It was such a peculiar box. Locked with a padlock, but the small window showcased the gold in all its glory.
Godric lifted himself to his feet, his legs shaking as though the earth quaked beneath him. He shouldered his rifle, both hands firm around the handles.
He moved a glow stick atop the box and made his way to the table in the front room.
In the corner of the room, the rocking chair remained still with old woman fast asleep.
He carried the lockbox to the table, placing it gently on its back. The window allowed him to examine the rock. He stared through the tiny glass in awe. Gold pieces shimmered against the glow stick beside it on the table.
Godric found himself entranced by the fortune before him, but a familiar chill returned to his bones. He whirled around to the rocking chair.
It was empty.
In shock, he spun back to the table, where across from him, the old woman gawked with her glass eye.
“Geez,” Godric said, nearly yelling. “I’m sorry, ma’am. You startled me.”
“Have you opened it yet?” she whispered.
“What?”
“The box… have you opened it yet?”
Godric noticed she no longer held her shotgun. “No. We are carrying it for someone.”
“Funny,” she said, leaning over the table. “I used to have a similar box. Many years ago, I kept my treasures locked away in a box at all times. I remember the box... it had my name etched on the side. In large letters, it read: SUNNY MOON. Over time, I regretted never holding the things I held dear to me. You question, as years go by, if any of your treasures were real. One can never be sure if what they hold is truly precious until they feel it with their own touch.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Open the box, kid. You know you want to.”
Godric couldn’t deny it. He wanted to hold the Nirvana Gold. His heart wanted to believe it was real, but his mind questioned the legitimacy of the treasure that put them in so much danger.
He looked at the thick black lock near the handle of the box. His finger reached in his pocket, pulling out a switch blade.
He flicked the blade out and picked the lock. With one twist, the lock opened. His fingers slid the lock off the box, flicking both latches open.
The lockbox creaked open.
He flipped the top open, revealing the rock and the breath-taking shimmer of gold. His palm gripped the rock and brought it into the light of the glow stick. It was a little larger than his hand, its edges rocky and deformed.
Once again, mesmerized by the beauty of the mineral, he became mystified.
Never in his life had he seen an object so dazzling. In this moment, he knew the journey was worth the risk and he could finally afford to help his family out of the hell they lived in every second of the day.
Luna and Byrd deserved better lives, too, and he hoped this potential fortune could change their lives for the better.
Things would never be the same once they sold the rock and it excited Godric.
Another flash of three lightning bolts alarmed him enough to look out the window. Through the window, out in the trees, he made out the figures of men. His eyes widened, the home becoming dark once again.
He turned to face the old woman, but found himself alone in the room. Instead he simply heard her voice whisper, “You cannot outrun what has begun. There is no escaping what has been done. Goodbye, stranger. Savor your treasure forever.”
4
Panic-stricken, Godric scanned the room with no sign of the old woman. The rain continued to pour on the broken-down cabin. Each drop smashed against the roof, similar to the sound of shots on a battlefield.
Whoever was outside, they were surrounding the home.
“Guys,” Godric whispered. He tried his best to get Luna and Byrd’s attention without alerting the intruders outside. He couldn’t be certain, but he believed the Hazard gang found them. “Guys, wake up.”
In the dark home, he saw movement near the ground. Luna leaned forward from the hardwood floor. “What is it?” she whispered from the other room.
Before Godric could answer, the window near him shattered. A yellow stream of light shot through the glass. He ducked low to the floor, holding his breath. He waited for more shots, fearing Hazard sent an entire army of his thugs for the lockbox.
The rain was deafening with the broken window, funneling in the wild storm's screech.
“Godric!” a voice shouted.
In the living room, he saw both Luna and Byrd awake, crouched near a couch. They clutched their weapons with similar expressions of fear. “Come here!”
Godric moved forward to join his friends, but a loud slam against the front door impeded his steps. He backed away from the pulsating door.
Someone outside slammed the front door, trying to enter the home.
Before he could slip his rifle from his shoulder, the old wooden door swung open with a violent THUD. A man with a drenched hat trudged into the cabin, a pistol in each hand. The man, masked by a dark red bandana, nothing but his bright blue eyes for Godric to see, waddled forward. He locked in a hectic gaze with Godric. Both men jumped in shock at the sight of each other.
A silver blast streaked from the living room into the back of the intruder. The man fell to the ground, face first against the drizzled floor.
Godric stared across the home at Luna, who bared her hunting rifle. Her weapon sizzled at the barrel, revealing who shot the intruder.
She saved my life.
“Godric, come over here!” Byrd shouted beside his sister. They were safer together, but with Godric in a separate room, he was an easy target. “Stay low to the ground... Get down!”
Byrd raised his rifle in Godric’s direction, firing a shot. The silver stream raced over his head, smashing into the chest of a man standing outside the fractured window.
He saved my life, too.
Uncertain, but Godric had a strong feeling the attackers were not only part of the Hazard gang, but did not intend on sparing the three hunters. No other explanation made sense.
Rain continued with relentless force onto the roof. Water made its way through the shattered window and broken-down doorway.
Other than the daunting storm, the home seemed calmer. No more men attacked the home, but they heard a distant voice shouting over the storm.
“Young hunters… come out of the house,” the voice ordered over the rain. Godric recognized the voice instantly as the eerily calm tone of Kit Ramses. “We have the place surrounded. If you come out with the box, we will let you go and get as far from the territory as possible. Fail to comply, and we will come in there and take it from you. Give us back what's ours right now or more men will come in there and end this.”
Godric crawled to the win
dow on his knees, using the lockbox as a third leg. He poked his head up to the broken windowsill, trying to get a good look at the gang. Through the thick rain, three men stood out in the open.
Without a doubt, he knew the tallest man in the center was Kit.
“How many are there?” a voice asked near Godric. He ducked and whirled around to Byrd crouched―still in the living room―but closer to the front doorway. “Did you see them?”
“Just three,” Godric said while his breathing became more erratic. “It’s Hazard’s men.”
Byrd turned back to his sister and nodded.
Luna crouch-walked toward the window near her, aiming her rifle at the glass.
Byrd poked his rifle through the open doorway. “Liar!” He fired a shot at the three gang members.
Godric peeked through the window once more where the three gangsters dispersed into the woods.
The gang fired shots back at the home. One energy blast flew over Godric’s head, missing him by mere inches. He ducked back to the floor, sticking his rifle into the broken window, shooting randomly into the darkness.
Under the chaotic storm in the sky, a fire fight ensued in the dark of the night. Bright streams of light fired back and forth between the house and the wilderness.
One energy stream struck the hardwood floor next to Byrd’s leg. The younger brother was forced to retreat back into the living room with his sister. Luna continued to fire shots into the dark forest, but nothing hit the hidden gang members.
Godric moved away from the window, keeping his back against the wall. He hoped a wild shot wouldn’t fire into his back since the majority of shots were fluttering through the shattered window and front door near him. He shut his eyes tight, his body trembling from the intense firefight.
His eyes opened with nothing but the dark room in front of him. Through the shadows of the home, the closet door ahead of him creaked open. Inside the small closet, as the door opened wide, the old woman stood in the cramped space.
She kept her arms at her sides and stayed motionless, staring at him. Her arm moved forward slightly ahead of her and her finger extended. She pointed at the floor under her feet.
Three Omens: The Hollow Galaxy: Book I Page 3