Chapter Eleven: Incursion

When she woke up the next morning, she had her mind made up. She decided she would go to the cemetery and find the tombstone of Darla Ocatvius. It was the only thing tangible from her dreams. Therefore, she took a quick shower, got ready, and left after saying a quick goodbye to her mother. It was a thirty-minute walk to the woods, and once she got there she tried to find her way to the cemetery. She knew she was never good with memorizing ways. In fact, she was quite terrible at it, but she was also resilient and stubborn. She hoped she was going the right way, but the woods in the morning seemed so different from how she recalled.

Suddenly the chirping of the birds got louder, and there was a fleet of them flying over her head. She looked around feeling the wind picking up ever so slightly. Her steps came to a stop as she looked around. It sounded so dumb to her to call out and check if anyone was around. Lorraine shook her head, then resumed her walking with a determined look over her face. It was only a couple of minutes later that she heard a loud whoosh of air behind her. She snapped her head in the direction of the sound but was met with nothing. Her heart started drumming through her chest, rather loud in her ears, and her hands felt cold and clammy.

She clenched her hands into fists next to her and resumed walking. She knew she was close. “Just a little bit more.” She thought to herself. Walking a little bit further, the cemetery was in her view. However, she heard the crunching of leaves coming from behind her. A clear sign that someone was following. She froze for a part of the second, before turning her head ever so slowly, only to be met with nothing once more. “What the hell?” She mumbled under her breath. She turned back, planning to continue on her way, but this time she decided she would just run for it. Only to bump into someone’s hard chest. Her eyes carefully looked up and widened at the sight before her.

There stood someone, or rather something which resembled a man in the body, but his features were nothing similar to a human. Red eyes surrounded with circular redness around them similar to two giant bruises, along with two long fangs descending from his upper jaw. Lorraine was choking on air, unable to let out a scream. She made an attempt to turn the other way and make a run for it, but he grabbed her roughly by the arm.

She tried to push him away, “Let me go!” She yelled loudly, trying to break free from his hold. She saw he was about to say something, only to stiffen. His nose scrunched up slightly, and he seemed to look at something behind her. He dropped her to the ground. She fell on her knees, but the pain of the fall wasn’t registered as her eyes followed him.

“I know you’re here.” The man said with a tilt of his head. She couldn't see his face with his back turned to her. But she heard a rustle and saw someone coming out from behind a tree, “Aiden, run!” She shouted, worried that he might get hurt. No sooner had the words left her mouth, than the man who was holding her moved at a speed that almost made him invisible towards Aiden and attacked him. She could only see flashes of their movement, until they came to a stop with Aiden pinning the man to the ground. In another quick movement, the man flipped them over then eloped the scene.

Aiden got off the ground, brushing the dirt off his clothes, and walked towards her with slow steps. He put his hand up when he saw her trying to crawl away from him, “I’m not going to hurt you”. He said with a pained look on his face. “I would never hurt you.” He could understand her reluctance, but it pained him all the same. “It’s okay”. He kneeled next to her and extended his hand for her to take, “Let’s get out of here”.

He didn’t know why he had followed her, partially it was because he was worried about her. But there was another part of him that considered Bates’ words. He knew better than to trust Cedric’s words, but had no reason to lie. He didn’t think Lorraine knew anything about their world and it was proven that she wasn't what they had thought her to be. *“Had she been the one, she would have been able to defend herself?” *


She tried to clear her mind of her fear and shock, and on wobbly knees she got off the ground, ignoring his extended hand. “I have to…” She stammered, “I have to go to the cemetery.” Aiden looked around them, scanning the area for any sign of danger, but he couldn’t sense anything. So, he gave a reluctant nod. He didn’t know her reasons for wanting to go there, but he was willing to go with her. He knew he couldn't leave her alone and unprotected.

Aiden led the way, none of them said a word. Lorraine wasn’t even sure if there was anything to say. She realized that she should have run to the hills with what she had just seen. “How did he move this fast?” The question echoed in her mind, along with many others. Once she saw the cemetery ahead of them, Lorraine rushed towards the direction where she remembered seeing the tombstone.

Aiden watched as she kneeled before a tombstone; her hand wiping the dust which covered the carving of the name. “Darla Octavius”, she shook her head, bewildered, “So, you actually exist?”

“Who is she?” Aiden asked with furrowed eyebrows.

Lorraine looked up, catching his eyes with her own confused ones, “Isn’t that the million-dollar question?” She turned her gaze back to the tombstone, “I saw it in a dream”. She mumbled under breath; the shock was still too much for her to comprehend what was happening.

“I think it would be better if we get out of here”. Aiden said, looking around him suspiciously. It was like he could hear or see something that she couldn’t. But that fact didn’t seem to bother her; she had decided that there were many things she didn’t know or understand.