Record Nineteen - Lia

  A middle school girl stood in the grass by the lake.

  She had on her school uniform. Her dark-brown hair was tied into a messy pony tail. Her blazer was tied around her waist because it was too warm.

  Despite looking completely normal, her posture was anything but.

  She spread her feet apart and raised one hand slowly in front of her face like she was holding invisible power.

  “I AM…DARK DESTROYER FLAME MASTER,” she declared loudly. “Commander of demons. Destroyer of worlds.”

  Mina was sitting cross-legged in the grass a few feet away. Her blazer was folded neatly beside her. Her tie was slightly loose. She was watching Lia.

  “My power has slept for many years…but today it awakens.”

  “So… does this mean you’re evil?”

  “Yes.”

  “You stand before me as the last defender of this land.”

  Mina blinked once. Then she slowly stood up, brushing grass off her skirt.

  She took two small steps back and folded her arms. She didn’t change her expression much. She just lowered her voice a little.

  “I am Mina…Empress of shadow. I control shadows. And also.. birds.”

  “Birds?”

  “Yes,” Mina said calmly. “They report everything to me.”

  “So that duck is your spy?”

  “Yes.”

  Lia nodded seriously. She walked closer to Mina and pointed at her.

  “You think you can defeat me? I have trained for years.”

  Lia took a deep breath. She shoved her hands forward like she was throwing energy.

  Mina immediately shrieked and flung herself backward into the grass. She rolled twice, then laid flat on her back one arm stretched out.

  “You’re too strong…” she groaned.

  Lia walked closer.

  “You are incredible,” she said in a lower voice. “Few survive even one percent of my power.”

  …

  They were both lying flat on their backs in the grass now.

  The ground was still warm from the afternoon sun. The sky above them was slowly changing colors, turning orange and pink as the sun lowered toward the trees on the other side of the lake.

  Lia lifted one hand up toward the sky, holding it in front of her face like she was trying to grab the sun. The light passed through the small gaps between them, glowing around her hand. She squinted slightly but didn’t move away.

  Mina lay beside her, close but not touching. Her hands were resting on her stomach. She stared up at the sky too, her expression calm, almost distant. Every now and then her eyes shifted toward Lia, like she was waiting for whatever random thing was about to come out of her mouth next.

  After a long quiet moment, Lia spoke.

  “Hey, did you know…”

  Mina turned her head slightly toward her.

  “What?”

  Lia lowered her hand slowly and turned onto her side so she could look at Mina properly.

  “There’s this tunnel near the old bridge,” Lia began, lowering her voice for effect. “It’s haunted.”

  Mina didn’t respond, but her eyes focused fully on Lia now.

  “ Some girls, our age, used it as shortcut to get home faster.”

  The wind moved gently through the grass around them.

  Lia leaned in a little closer.

  “They never came back”

  Mina’s fingers tightened slightly on her skirt, but she still didn’t speak.

  “Then, some other kids decided to check it out. To prove it wasn’t haunted.

  She paused for effect.

  “They went in.”

  “They never came out.”

  Mina’s eyes were wide now, completely focused on Lia. She had rolled onto her side.

  “They say,” Lia added lowering her voice even more. “If you stand at the entrance, you can hear footsteps coming from inside. And if you shine a flashlight inside, you see something past the light. Something stepping out of sight.”

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  “Ren told me about it,” she continued. “he swears its true.”

  The sky grew darker by the second, the sun sinking even lower.

  “We should go see it.”

  Mina blinked.

  She stayed lying down for a second longer, then she slowly rolled and pushed herself up into a sitting position.

  “Actually…” Mina started, not making eye contact. “I just remembered something.”

  “What?”

  “Mom,” Mina said quickly. “She told me to… uh… water the plants after school.”

  “At night?”

  “Yes.”

  “In the dark?”

  “Yes.”

  Lia stared. She grinned and rose up on her knees. She scooted closer until she was directly in front of Mina, leaning down to catch her eyes.

  “Are you scared?” she teased.

  “Yes.”

  There was a small pause.

  They stared at each other.

  Lia giggled and stood up. She grabbed Mina’s hands and pulled her up to her feet.

  “Don’t worry,” Lia declared confidently. “I will protect you.”

  Mina blinked up at her.

  “Really?”

  “Yeah.”

  Mina stared at her for a moment longer, then sighed.

  “Okay fine.”

  …

  The tunnel stood in front of them now.

  It was smaller than Mina expected but still worse. The entrance was made of old concrete, cracked along the edges and stained dark from years of rainwater. Weeds grew along the edges. The setting sun barely reached past the entrance and everything beyond a few steps looked like a slid wall of black.

  Mina stood very still.

  “Your not going to leave me, are you?” she asked softly.

  Lia reached down and took Mina’s hand. Her grip was warm and firm. Mina squeezed back immediately.

  “Hmm.. Don’t worry.”

  “I’ll be by your side. Always.”

  …

  The tunnel was narrow and damp, the air thick and cold against their skin. Water dripped from somewhere above, landing in slow, echoing drops that made the silence feel heavier. The floor was rough and slightly wet. Every small step made a scraping sound.

  Lia lifted her wrist and pressed a button on her watch. A weak beam of light flickered on.

  It barely helped.

  The light was thin and pale, only reaching a few feet ahead of them. It shook slightly because Lia’s hand wasn’t completely steady.

  Mina stayed glued to her side. She had both arms wrapped tightly around Lia’s arm, clinging to it like a koala. Her fingers dug into the fabric of Lia’s sleeve. Her shoulder pressed firmly against Lia’s.

  They moved forward slowly.

  One careful step at a time.

  The tunnel seemed longer than it should have been.

  Clank.Clank.

  Something rolled across the floor ahead of them.

  A metal can.

  Mina shrieked and almost jumped onto Lia completely.

  Lia giggled, even though her own heart had jumped.

  “Don’t worry,” she said, trying to sound brave.

  Mina did not loosen her grip.

  They moved a few more inches. The entrance behind them already looked smaller. The air felt colder.

  Suddenly Lia stopped.

  She bent down quickly.

  “What are you doing?!” Mina whispered urgently. “Don’t stop. Let’s get out of here.”

  “I’m just tying my shoe,” Lia replied casually. She looked up at Mina and angled her wrist so the weak light pointed toward her sneaker. “See?”

  Mina was not calm.

  Her eyes were darting everywhere else.

  To the walls.

  To the darkness ahead.

  Every tiny sound made her flinch. She felt like something was watching from just beyond.

  She reached slightly toward Lia…

  Her hand hit air.

  She blinked.

  She looked down.

  Nothing.

  Lia was gone.

  Her heart dropped into her stomach.

  “Lia?”

  Her voice echoed weakly.

  “Lia.”

  No answer.

  “LIA!”

  Only dripping water responded.

  Her breathing became faster. She turned around quickly.

  “Lia!” she shouted again, her voice cracking.

  Something fell behind her.

  A loud metallic crash.

  She froze.

  The she heard it.

  Footsteps.

  Heavy.

  Slow.

  Getting closer.

  And then…

  Whistling.

  Her entire body locked.

  “Lia…p... please come out…”

  The footsteps got closer.

  The whistling stopped.

  Silence.

  Then..

  Something brushed her arm.

  She felt fingers wrap briefly around her wrist and tug backward.

  She gasped sharply and twisted around

  “LI…”

  “WAAAAAAH!”

  Lia suddenly jumped out from behind her and shouted loudly.

  Mina screamed. Sharp and full.

  She stumbled backward hard, lost her balance and fell against the tunnel wall before sliding down onto the ground. Her back hit the stone. Her breathing went out of control immediately. Her hands flew up to her chest as she tried to inhale properly.

  She looked like she couldn’t get enough air.

  Lia’s smile disappeared instantly.

  She rushed forward and dropped to her knees in front of her. She grabbed Mina’s face gently but firmly, trying to make her focus.

  “MINA!”

  Mina’s eyes were wide and glassy.

  She shoved Lia slightly.

  “YOU SAID YOU WON’T LEAVE ME!” she shouted, tears spilling down her face.

  “You said you won’t leave mee!” her voice cracked.

  Lia’s expression broke.

  She pulled Mina’s head forward and pressed it against her chest, wrapping both arms tightly around her.

  “Sorry,” Lia whispered.

  She rested her own head on top of Mina’s.

  “Sorry.”

  They stayed like that for a few seconds in the dark tunnel, holding each other.

  …

  A few minutes later, they stepped out of the tunnel.

  The night air outside felt fresh and open compared to the suffocating darkness inside. They walked forward silently, holding hands tightly.

  “Sorry,” Lia said again quietly.

  “It’s okay,” Mina replied softly.

  The slowed down slightly, moving closer to each other again.

  After a few seconds , Mina spoke again.

  “When did you learn how to whistle?”

  I don’t,” Lia replied.

  She tried to whistle to prove it.

  Nothing came out. Just air.

  “Heh!”

  Mina slowly turned her head.

  And looked back at the tunnel.

  …

  One week later.

  The hallways were loud as usual. Lockers slamming. Students laughing. Lia sat at her desk near the window, half listening to the teacher. Mina sat beside her, drawing small shapes in the margin of her notebook.

  Back at Lia’s house, the living room was quiet.

  Her mom was sitting on the couch with a folded blanket over her legs. The afternoon light came through the curtains softly. The television was on, the volume set lightly higher than usual.

  A red banner flashed across the bottom of the screen.

  BREAKING NEWS.

  Then the headline appeared at the bottom of the screen.

  MAN ARRESTED IN SERIES OF MINOR ABDUCTIONS NEAR ABANDONED TUNNEL.

  The camera cut to footage of police cars parked near the entrance of an old tunnel. Yellow caution tape blocked off the area. Officers moved in and out of frame. A crowd had gathered at a distance.

  A serious-looking news anchor spoke clearly.

  “Authorities have confirmed the arrest of a thirty eight year old male suspect connected to multiple disappearances of minors over the past months. Authorities confirm that the suspect was taken into custody without resistance.”

  The screen switched to a filed reporter standing near the taped off tunnel. The wind blew her hair slightly as she held a small microphone.

  “Authorities believe the suspect would wait for Minors to enter toward the tunnel area before abducting them,” she said clearly. “Officials have not yet released full details, but they have confirmed that the investigation is ongoing and more evidence is being processed.”

  “While officials have not confirmed the total number of victims, they have stated that this arrest may be connected to several open missing children and teen's cases from the past months.”

  The footage cut briefly to a blurred image of a man inside a police car.

  “We will continue to update this story as more information becomes available,” the anchor concluded.

  “REN!”

  Lia’s mom suddenly shouted toward the hallway.

  “GO GET THE GIRLS FROM SCHOOL.”

  From another room, a frustrated teenage voice yelled back.

  “HEH? WHY?!”

  “They can walk home,” The boy complained. “It’s like ten minutes.”

  “REN!"

  Lia’s mom tone changed.

  “Go get your sister.”

  “You will walk them home. And make sure Mina is inside her house before you leave.”

  …PRESENT…

  “Hmmm. Just admit that you miss me”

  Lia was walking down the street toward her apartment building, her phone pressed between ear and shoulder while she adjusted the strap of her bag. The evening air was cool and the y had already started dimming into blue-gray.

  She had that lazy smile on her face, the kind she only used when she was teasing someone close to her.

  “I love yo…”

  The person on the other end hang up. She pulled the phone away and typed something, grinning.

  Streetlights flickered on one by one.

  She walked casually toward the building entrance. Her steps were relaxed. A car passed by behind her. Someone laughed loudly in the distance.

  She reached for the entrance door.

  She paused.

  Her breathing shifted first. Slow at first then deeper. Then uneven. Her chest rose higher with each inhale.

  She took one step back.

  And another.

  She looked up toward the roof top edge.

  Fabric.

  A skirt shifting in the wind.

  Feet.

  Too close to the edge.

  She rushed forward suddenly.

  She swiped the key card hurriedly, before shoving the door open and ran inside. Her bag dropped from her shoulder.

  She went straight for the stairs.

  Up one flight.

  Two.

  Three.

  Her footsteps echoed loudly in the stairwell. Her breathing was harsh now, almost gasping. Her legs burned but she didn’t slow down. She grabbed the railing to pull herself faster around each turn.

  Her mind was racing but blank at the same time. She reached the final flight and pushed the rooftop door open with force.

  It slammed hard against the wall.

  And at that exact moment..

  A dull thud.

  She stepped out. The wind on the rooftop hit her face immediately, stronger up here. Colder.

  She froze.

  Her mouth trembled slightly as she stared ahead. Her eyes twitched. Her eyebrows pulled together slightly. Her lips pressed tightly as if holding something back.

  “Mina…” she called out.

  It barely came out. It was a breath more than a voice.

  Her eyes widened. Unfocused. Her mouth opened slightly, trembling. Her chin shook as she tried to breathe steadily and failed.

  “Minaa.”

  The word slipped out softly.

  And she stood there, unable to move.

  At the edge of the rooftop railings…

  A pair of familiar house slippers sat.