The Legend of the Firewalker

by Steve Bevil [paranormal/YA]

  “True,” said Angela, tilting her long curly blonde hair to the side. “I guess I’ll just have to wait until tomorrow.”

  Alan leaned in and whispered. “So – I wonder what it will be like to meet Leah?” he said.

  Nathan looked surprised because he was wondering the same thing. He often speculated about her personality and wondered how her laugh would be. He already knew what she looked like from his dreams, but thanks to the yearbook that Lafonda borrowed from Jonathan he had an image of her that wasn’t a terrifying memory. Nathan’s eyes slowly drifted into the red glow of the fire. He remembered how he felt looking in the yearbook and finally seeing her bright happy smile.

  “I wonder if she’ll be crazy,” said Alan, abruptly. He had a weird, but serious look on his face.

  Nathan couldn’t believe what he was hearing.

  “Really, Alan?” asked Angela.

  “What?” asked Alan. “I know everyone is thinking it – you’re just not saying it out loud!”

  “Hardly,” said Nathan. “After all she’s been through, I can’t believe you still think she’s crazy.”

  Alan looked like he was trying not to laugh. “I’m not saying she is,” he said. “I’m just throwing it out there. I heard she was like a crazy woman when they found her – so crazy they had to call the police!”

  “That rumor was started by Steve and Amanda,” protested Nathan. “And Amanda is known to be a little dramatic.”

  “Well, the police part isn’t made up,” responded Alan.

  “It was campus security,” said Nathan, through beady eyes.

  “Same thing,” said Alan, confidently. “They had to call law enforcement to get her.”

  Nathan stood up and kicked a rock into the water. “Whatever,” he said, “I’ve had enough of this conversation.”

  Angela punched Alan in the arm. “Ouch!” he yelled. “Why did you do that?”

  “Because you made Nathan leave that’s why,” she said. “Why did you say all that stuff about Leah?”

  The sound of their voices faded as Nathan walked away. The last thing he heard was Angela saying something about Steve and Amanda still being missing. He stood in front of the refreshments table and picked up one of the wind strewn cups that rolled back and forth across the table. He wanted a drink of water, but the container was empty and so were the bottles of fruit juice and bags of chips.

  Nathan sighed. He wasn’t in the mood to rejoin the group so he decided to clear the table and found a black trash bag.

  “Wow, that table looks like a war zone,” said a cheery voice behind him.

  Nathan sighed again. Who is this now? He turned around and was surprised to see Samantha Darding standing in front of him. Nathan cleared his throat. “Oh – hi, Sam,” he said.

  She smiled. Her hair was loosely pulled back into a bun and a long strand of curly brown hair hung freely to the side of her face. “So, there’s nothing left?” she said, eyeing the table.

  “Yeah,” said Nathan. “When it comes to food, these guys are like vultures.”

  Sam laughed. “Here,” she said, placing her empty cup into the bag. “I’ll help you.” She looked up into the ominous sky. “I assume we will be leaving soon anyway.”

  “Yeah, I suspect that as soon as LaDonda and Malick return she’ll be ushering us out of here.” Nathan paused to look up at the sky. He noticed the trees had begun to sway and the air seemed cooler. “I’m surprised she hasn’t texted one of the counselors yet, instructing us to head back to Lawrence hall.”

  “Yup, it definitely looks like a storm is heading our way,” she said. “I hope it doesn’t affect the banquet or the fireworks tomorrow.”

  Nathan chuckled. “Don’t worry,” he said. “LaDonda already has that covered. I was told that if it rains, we’ll just have the banquet inside.” He paused to start folding the tablecloth. “And in the past, if it rains on the Fourth of July, they usually just have the fireworks display the following day.”

  Sam took the other end of the tablecloth to help him. “I know,” she said, with a smile, “I live here too remember?”

  He smiled, placed the folded tablecloth in a maroon bag that had plastic cups in it, and nodded his head. “Yeah – that’s right,” he said, feeling slightly embarrassed.

  “My parents will be here tomorrow for the banquet and closing ceremony,” she continued, “Jim too. I suspect he’s only coming because of Lafonda.”

  Nathan nodded his head and attempted to collapse the table. A bolt of lightning lit-up the sky and a crack of thunder sounded, off in the distance. “I’m sure Lafonda will be excited,” he said, with a chuckle.

  Sam smiled and then stood in silence for a moment. “How come I haven’t seen you at any of Jim’s parties or when Lafonda comes over?” she asked.

  Nathan could feel his face turning red. “You mean – at your house?” he stammered.

  “Well, technically it’s my parent’s house,” she responded. “But yes.”

  Nathan’s ears burned so he knew his face had to be bright red. The truth was, he just didn’t think he would fit in. He shrugged his shoulders. “Umm, no reason,” he said.

  “Good,” she said, enthusiastically. “Because I am having my seventeenth birthday party next month and I want you to come.”

  His eyes were wide. “Me?” he asked, in surprise. He didn’t want her to know he was surprised so he relaxed and spoke with a more confident voice. “I mean – you want me to come?”

  Samantha nodded her head and tried not to giggle. “Yes,” she said, “you can just come with Lafonda. It will be fun and I’ve invited some people from camp too.”

  “Am I missing something here?” he asked. “Are those two back together?”

  Sam’s eyebrows were raised. “I don’t know anything,” she said, with a grin. “I’ll let them tell you.”

  He frowned. “I’ll take that as a yes.”

  A bolt of lightning streaked across the sky illuminating the clouds directly above them. The sound of loud rumbling thunder followed and Sam jumped. Nathan looked down and saw that Sam was holding his arm. “That was loud,” he said.

  Nervously, Samantha released Nathan’s arm and fidgeted with her clothes and hair. “Yes,” she said. “It was.”

  He looked down again. This time it was because his pants leg was vibrating. “I bet that’s LaDonda calling me,” he said.

  Nathan spoke on the phone for a while and then ended the call. “Yup,” he said. “It was LaDonda. She said she’s almost here, but wanted me to clean up and break down the table.”

  “Check,” said Samantha, while eyeing the folded up table and closed garbage bag. “You are way ahead of her.”

  Overhead, another bolt of lightning lit-up the sky, followed by a low rumble. LaDonda and Malick were walking swiftly out of the forest and Nathan was surprised to see Argus close behind them.

  “Listen up, everyone!” LaDonda projected loudly. “As you can see there is a storm heading our way, so let’s pack up and head back to Lawrence Hall.”

  Nathan could hear grumbles from some of the campers. He overheard Hugo and Andy being obnoxious about having to leave early. “Hey,” he said assertively, “You guys knock it off or you’re likely to get in trouble.”

  “It hasn’t started raining yet,” protested Hugo.

  Andy moaned. “Ugh, why do we have to leave early?” he asked. He started to sit back down. “What if we don’t want to leave?”

  “What?” asked Nathan. “Are you guys drunk or something?” He paused to look in LaDonda’s direction. “You keep this up and LaDonda’s going to kill you.”

  Hugo flippantly waved his hand in LaDonda’s direction. “Whatever,” he said. “She isn’t the boss of me.”

  “Hey, settle down!” LaDonda demanded, arms flapping in the air. “I’m not going to say it again. Now everyone get your donkeys moving or you will be sorry!”

  Andy and Hugo quickly stood up at attention.

  Nathan snickered heartily
. “See, I told you,” he said.

  “Hey,” said Malick. “LaDonda wants us to quickly put out the fires before the storm hits.”

  Nathan tried not to frown. After today, being stuck with Malick again was the last thing he wanted. He took a deep breath and tried to relax. “Try to be appreciative,” he told himself. “Even though he’s acting like Fort Knox or the CIA when it comes to certain information, I would be completely clueless if it wasn’t for Malick.”

  “Nathan!” called Jonas, approaching on his left. “Can we chat for a second?”

  Nathan had a pretty good idea what Jonas wanted to talk about, but he really didn’t know what to tell him. At all costs, Nathan wanted to keep Jonas safe even if that meant keeping him in the dark a little while longer. “Yeah – sure,” he responded with hesitation. “But right now really isn’t a good time.”

  Jonas suddenly looked glum.

  “But let’s chat later tonight,” Nathan continued. “After I get back to Lawrence Hall.”

  “Come on, guys,” said Samantha. “Let’s get going so Malick and Nathan can put out these fires before they get rained on.”

  Nathan smiled.

  She held the end of the folded-up table. “Can anybody help a lady carry a table?”

  “I’ll help you,” responded Andy quickly.

  Hugo’s large forehead formed frown lines. “No, I’ll do it,” he said. “Look, I can carry it all by myself.”

  “Good,” said Samantha, before Andy could get a word in. “Then Andy can carry the garbage bag and…” She handed the maroon bag to Jonas. “And you can carry this one.”

  “No problem,” responded Andy cheerfully, with large saucer eyes.

  She smiled. “See you at the banquet tomorrow, Nathan,” she said. “Good night, Malick.”

  He smiled. “Good night, Sam.”

  Malick nodded.

  “Don’t forget to pack guys!” shouted Nathan after them. “I want to see some packing going on when I get upstairs.”

  “Yeah, yeah!” yelled back Hugo.

  “I’m serious, guys,” he said. “Your parents aren’t going to like it if you’re not packed tomorrow.”

  “We got it!” shouted Andy, before stepping into the forest.

  Malick stared at Nathan and grinned.

  “What?” Nathan asked, defensively.

  Malick smiled. “Nothing.”

  “She’s only sixteen,” protested Nathan.

  Malick laughed. “Uh-huh,” he murmured playfully.

  Nathan rolled his eyes. A loud crack filled the air followed by a deep long rumble. “Whatever,” he said. “Let’s get going before we’re rained on, or worse, electrocuted.

  Just a few fires remained. Nathan kneeled down and filled the bucket again. The surface of the lake was completely black now and he could hardly see his reflection. The pit sizzled and made a hissing sound as he filled it with water. “So, how did you and LaDonda end up with Argus?” he asked.

  Malick tossed more water into the pit. “I don’t know,” he said. “They were in the lobby together after I took Drew upstairs. They were having a conversation about something, but stopped after they saw me.”

  Nathan turned around. A light was on at the Hiking and Camping Center. “Has he said anything to you since…”

  “Nope, not a word.” Malick had a grin on his face. “Just our usual communication – a bottle of lighter fluid and some matches left inside a wheelbarrow.”

  Nathan looked down. His phone was vibrating in his pocket. He saw that it was Lafonda and decided to just let it go to voicemail. “What about a pendant?” he asked, abruptly. “Have you found a way to cloak my powers yet?”

  Malick paused. “Not yet,” he said. “But I’m working on it. There’s a guy I heard of in London, he specializes in this sort of thing – protective enchantments and stuff.”

  “London?” Nathan asked. He had a surprised look on his face.

  “Yes, London,” responded Malick. He suddenly looked serious and there was panic in his voice. “Have you been using your powers? Did you have another dream? What about Jonas?”

  “No,” responded Nathan. “I haven’t used my powers and I haven’t dream walked either.” A raindrop landed on his neck. “And I don’t think Jonas has either,” he said. “I mean – at least I don’t think he has – he would have told me.”

  Malick had a look of relief on his face. “Thank, God! You almost gave me a panic attack.” He ran his hand backwards through his hair. “I’m waiting to hear from a good friend of mine to talk to her about what has happened here at camp,” he said. “You know, about the Shadow Creatures, your friend Leah, Jonas, Grimm Cemetery, and everything else. She has a better handle on this stuff than I do. I really think there is a connection here – we just haven’t seen it yet.”

  Nathan stood behind Malick as he filled his bucket with more water. “I think there is a connection too,” he said. He reached into his pocket and saw he had missed another call from Lafonda. “Maybe this would be a good time to tell you what else I saw in the dream.”

  Malick quickly stood up, causing the water to swoosh around the sides of the bucket. “What do you mean?” he asked. “Were there others?”

  Nathan stood there for a moment. A cold chill went up his spine while remembering each detail that led up to Lafonda’s death. “Yes,” he stuttered, remembering the silver, double-edged sword. “There definitely were others.” Nathan swallowed hard as Malick looked on intently. “There were these black-robed figures with swords – they were hooded so I guess they were dressed in cloaks,” he continued slowly. “And then, there were their red-hooded counterparts. It looked like they were performing some kind of ritual…”

  “The guys with the swords are called Shadow Guards,” Malick interrupted. Nathan noticed he had that serious look on his face again. “And the red hooded figures are called Scarlet Priests.”

  Malick walked over to one of the remaining fires that now flickered in the wind.

  “There also was this woman dressed in white,” said Nathan.

  “A woman?”

  “Yeah. And one of those red-cloaked guys – one of those Scarlet Priests – he had a medallion around his neck.”

  Malick tossed the water into the pit and froze. “What kind of medallion? I mean – what did it look like?”

  “It was silver. A gold and silver crescent-shaped medallion.”

  Malick stood still.

  Nathan could have sworn for a second he saw fear in his eyes, but it faded quickly when he smiled. Nathan looked down; the phone in his pocket was vibrating again. “It’s Lafonda. It’s the third time she’s called – I probably should call her back.”

  Malick blinked a few times and nodded his head. It was as if he was slowly coming back to life. “Yeah,” he murmured. “Go ahead and call her back.”

  A gust of wind pushed through the trees, followed by a low rumble. Nathan felt a few drops of rain on his neck. “I can’t get through,” he said. “I’ve never had this problem out here before.”

  “It’s probably the storm,” said Malick. He had a reassuring look on his face. “Go ahead and head back – and see if you can get a signal. I’ll finish up here.”

  “Are you sure?” asked Nathan.

  Malick tossed a bucket of water into the last remaining pit. “Yeah,” he said. “We’re done here. I just want to walk through and make sure all the fires are completely out. I’ll be right behind you.”

  Nathan paused. A bolt of purple lightning sprawled across the sky, revealing a swirl of dark grey clouds above the lake. “Okay,” he said. “But hurry, it’s getting bad out here.”

  Nathan entered the trail back to Lawrence Hall and nearly stumbled. The dark clouds circling above blocked any moonlight from entering the forest. The wind had picked up, causing the leaves and branches of the trees to sway back and forth like currents in a tempest ocean. He stopped to try his cell phone again. “Still no signal.” He squinted, trying to adjust his eyes to the
dark forest. “Why didn’t I bring a flashlight?”

  He continued up the path hearing the sound of rain drops all around him. A cold trickle of water slowly made its way down his back. “Ugh,” he uttered. “I’m going to get wet.” The trail in front of him seemed to gradually get wider so he assumed he was nearing the split in the trail that led eastward to the Cahokia Tribal Museum. “Almost halfway there. If I can just make it before the downpour.”

  Just then, the sound of raindrops increased; making intermittent sputtering sounds. Nathan tried to make a run for it, but soon he couldn’t see. His eyes blinked profusely under the pouring rain. “If I can just make it under a tree,” he mumbled. Through fluttering eyelashes, he tried to make it to a large oak tree, but slipped on a protruding tree root and went headfirst towards the ground. The rain had stopped and he wiped the water from his eyes. Nathan sat up to inspect the damage. He had used his right hand to shield himself from the ground and it throbbed.

  Slowly, his eyes adjusted to the darkness and he could hear the intermittent sound again. Great, it’s about to rain again, he thought. He attempted to stand up, but froze instead; it looked like there was movement along the trail. The intermittent sound drew closer and he quickly realized it wasn’t rain, but something coming towards him.

  Nathan crouched down and tried to conceal himself behind the large oak tree. He hoped it wasn’t those things; those Shadow Creatures. Malick had said those Necrocritters hate natural light and there was definitely no light there.

  Soon the approaching sound slowed and then stopped altogether. There was the silhouette of someone standing on the trail a few feet in front of him. Who is that? Who would be out on the trail this late at night and in a thunderstorm?”

  Nathan’s eyes strained as he attempted to make out the face of the dark figure. A small green light pierced the darkness, revealing a pair of square-rimmed glasses. “Jonathan!” he blurted out. He didn’t know why Jonathan wouldn’t have been at Lawrence Hall with Erin and the others.

  Jonathan appeared to be distracted and didn’t hear Nathan say his name. The green glow from his cell phone continued to illuminate his face. Nathan stood up as Jonathan took the path to the Northern Cahokia Tribal Museum. “Where is he going?” he said softly.