Chapter 2

“Euphoria? As in happiness? Ha ha, talk about the joke of the century!” I spat out. This place did not look a tad bit like euphoria at all. All I see are rocks, rocks and another piece of rock. With a big frown on my face, I stared at Qin waiting for an explanation. Qin just paced around the room not saying anything for awhile. The darkness in the room seemed to have swallowed him up.

“For us, it’s happiness to being able to be with our own kind. To actually still be alive to feel the happiness in us.” He let out a long sigh. Grief seemed to cloud up his eyes momentarily. For a minute there, my heart went out to him and I actually felt that his whole tough act was just a cover up. He turned and caught me staring at him with a sad look on my face. The mischievous sparkle quickly returned to his eyes as he gave me a half grin.

“So, how do I get out of here?” I was determined to get out there and find my missing family and memories. All he did was to look at me and laughed. I felt my anger rising up my chest with every laugh of his. I had to find something to get hold of my past. I needed to know that I truly existed before that fall. I needed to find myself. The person whom was more than just a name; Keisha.

“Going out there is like committing suicide. They have taken over by now; we stand no chance up there.” I sat there shocked, unable to even mutter a word. Did that mean all of my past was really now just a memory? Tears started flowing down my cheeks, I didn’t event try to control them this time. I had lost the people whom I loved. A family, friends, all gone, and I couldn’t even remember them enough to mourn for them. I cried, for the ones I couldn’t remember, for the lost of me, for the past I could not place in my mind. Qin placed his hand on my shoulder as I continued sobbing.

“Qin! What did you do this time?” we both turned and saw Kao standing at the doorway with a disapproving look on his face. He walked over to me and pulled me into an embrace. The softness on Qin’s face quickly disappeared as Kao glared at him. Some blurry images started floating through my mind. I closed my eyes and tried to focus on the scenes running through my brain. When I came back into focus, I noticed that Kao and Qin were standing right in front of me with a concern look on their faces.

“I’m fine. Kao, Qin didn’t say anything. It’s just me.” His expression suddenly seemed much more relaxed. I thought back to the scene earlier, what did Kao meant by this time? Had something happened between them before? There were a lot of questions in my mind, but I wasn’t given a chance to ask about any if them. Now, I had to focus. I need to find the real me hidden deep beneath that barrier. If I was the chosen one like Kao said, I needed to explore my powers and learn how to use them in time to defeat the vampires.

“Are you okay?” Qin was seating next to me. The words of concern snapped me out of my thoughts. He stood up and motioned me to do the same. I slowly stood up from where I was. Kao was already outside the room waiting impatiently. I took a step forward and fell as I lost my balance. Qin caught me in time and supported me with his body. With his support, I managed to walk in an upright position. I squinted as the sun light strike my eyes. Outside of the room, was like a whole new world. If they were to shoot a film on the day god created earth, this would be the perfect way. Standing from way up high, I had an eagle’s eye view. I could see a whole stretch of untouched forest with a clear stream of river flowing through the middle of it.

“Mummy, what are they doing?” the childish voice escaped from my throat. Big bulldozers were cutting down the trees and in their process of doing so; their huge wheels loosening the soil on the ground as they drove through it recklessly.

“We have just about to run out of resources, this is the last piece of forest on earth.” She replied as she shook her head in disgust.

“Keisha? Are you alright?” I opened my eyes and saw Qin’s face above mine. I seem to be hearing these words of concern more often then I wished to. The tip of the grass prickling the back of neck, I was laying on the ground once again. I slowly prop myself up. Qin handed me a bottle with water in it. I slowly let the liquid trickle down my throat. I smiled a weak smile and looked around. I was now by the stream, somehow that had carried me all the way down to the forest. Where was Kao? I wondered to myself.

“Where are we now?” I seem to find myself waking up in the weirdest place ever. Every time I wake up, surely I would find myself in a new surrounding. I really have to find a way to stop this blacking out thing. It’s starting annoying me. I went over to a tree nearby and caressed its rough bark.

“Is this real?” I asked uncertainly. I leaned against it feeling the rough wood scrape gently against my skin. I closed my eyes and inhale the smell of fresh wood. The smell smelt very familiar to me. Thousand of images ran through my mind that instant but I couldn’t catch any of them in time. As a leaf fell down on me, it made me shudder

“Run Keish, don’t look back. Run!” With that I ran as fast as my legs could bring me. The tears blurring up my vision as I heard the terrible screams. I wanted to turn around and try to fight them off but I knew it was useless. I had to save myself; their sacrifice could not go to waste. I had to run as fast I could. A forest, I could lose them in there. I heard their footsteps behind me. Leaves were falling around me everywhere; some of them were even above me. They were gaining in on me. The screams were still echoing in my mind. They will not let me off that easily if I were to get caught. I reached up for the amulet that hung on my neck. I gripped it tightly as I muttered a prayer. My legs were burning with pain; blisters were starting to form on the base of my feet. I had to run no matter what. A cliff. A dead end. No, they can’t know the secret. Knuckles white from holding the amulet tightly, I leaped off the cliff.

“Keisha, what’s wrong? Why are you crying?” Qin’s voice brought me back to the present. I realized my cheeks were wet with tears. That scene. Them vampires. They killed my parents. A sudden wave of sorrow washed over me. I remembered now. It was all slowly coming back to me. It was a summer vacation at that boarding house with them. My parents were investigating on some paranormal activities that have been happening in that area. The vampires must have found out about it and decided to get rid of their threat. The notes, where did mum said she’d put them? I tried to pull it out of the hidden memories but it refused to budge even one bit. Why couldn’t I remember that? It was the last connection to their lives and I can’t even help them to unleash it.

“I remember. Their cries for help. Their faces when they realized what was happening. The blood spraying to all the different directions.” I was sobbing so hard that I barely managed to get that sentence out. Qin pulled me close to him. He gently cooed like a mother would do to a baby to comfort it. As my sobs slowly subsided, I pulled away from him. Tears streak all across my face. I slowly made my way to the river and cup some water up with my hands to wash away the stains. Qin remained silent all this while. He seemed to be thinking really deeply about a serious matter I supposed. I watched him from afar, his eyebrows knitted in concentration. The moment he looked up and caught my gaze, he held it there. There was a certain familiarity in his eyes, I gasped.

“You’re one of them.” I whispered.