Reality byThought (RBT) (Chapter 1)

CHAPTER 1

"Quick! To the portal!" Mariko shouted. He saw a flick of his opponents arm, and rolled to dodge. It zipped past him and slammed into the wall with enough force to leave it stuck with small cracks surrounding the point of entry.

"No! Not without you Mariko!" Martha yelled. She stood by the portal. The small child's cries stung her ears and she held him more closely to her chest. Her sea-blue eyes darted from the portal to Mariko, who seemed to be dancing from one spot to another. Mariko muttered a saying under his breath, and closed his eyes. Flames suddenly swirled around his sword and he leapt toward his foe. He slashed his opponent's cheek, and the man staggered back, putting one hand on the open wound. He clashed swords with Mariko, and roared an ancient saying, one not known to commoners and his sword became encircled with lightning.

"GO NOW!" Mariko screamed as the lightning slithered from the opponent's sword to his body. He shook violently, grunted in pain, and fell to the floor. Martha stood motionless. She was in disbelief. This can't be happening!

"MARRRIIIKOOOO!"

The man stood over Mariko, laughing. He dug his sword into Mariko's chest and watched with a smile as the floor became stained with blood. He then pointed his sword toward Martha and her child

"You're next!"



Martha gasped as she stood upright in bed. Those faint memories of only nineteen years ago still pierced her heart with anguish. Her pale face felt sticky with dried tears that were never wiped. 'I must have been crying in my sleep,' she thought to herself as she pulled her jet-black hair into a messy ponytail. She groaned softly, realizing it was only 6o'clock in the morning.

She lazily got off the bed and proceeded to the bathroom. As she finished washing her face, she could hear the faint buzzing of the alarm clock in the room next door. She smiled softly when she heard a loud slam. Looks like he's up, she thought. Usually she would be more energetic in the morning, but the past couple of nights have been passed with constant flashbacks and being unable to sleep.

"Morning mom," said a faint voice from behind the bathroom door.

"Morning sweetie. Ready for breakfast?" Martha asked.

"Yes, but I need the bathroom so I can get ready for school," the male voice replied. Martha opened the door and smiled.

"Rick you look fine just like that!" She said, with a sudden burst of enthusiasm and gave him a hug. He let out a sigh.

"You're my mom; of course you'll think I look nice no matter what. Now, I really need the bathroom." Rick said with a bit of frustration in his voice. He was never a morning person and Martha knew that. She let him go gently and stepped aside. Rick gave a nod and rushed in, closing the door harshly behind him.

Rick looked at himself in the mirror. His sea-blue eyes were underlined with dark circles and attached to a pale face. He picked up his toothbrush and began to brush his teeth.  He felt like a machine, just going through the motions. Life was--bleh. Nothing interesting...just same old same old.

He walked out of the bathroom and into the kitchen where is mother was making breakfast. The air was filled with the smell of crisp bacon and toast. He licked his lips with anticipation and sat down at the crooked, wooden table. The chair moaned loudly as he pulled it closer to the table.

"I see someone is ready for breakfast," his mother said, sliding some scrambled eggs on a plastic plate.  She turned around and smiled. He noticed the exhaustion behind her eyes and the force of her smile. He smiled gently, wishing he could do more to help his mother.

"Fresh scrambled eggs with buttered toast and bacon!" she set the plate in front of him, along with a big glass of orange juice.

"Thanks, Mom!" and with that, he devoured his food. His mother's cooking was one of a few things that brightened his day. He hadn't realized how hungry he was until his plate was wiped clean.

"Time for school, I guess," Rick mumbled. Martha put her fingers through his brown hair, remembering the softness of his father's hair. She quickly shoved the memory in the back of her mind.

"You'll have a great day. I just know it!" she softly wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed his forehead. He slid under her embrace. He grabbed his worn-out book bag and walked to the door.

"Goodbye mom. Love you." He waved and left the small apartment with a silent close of the door. Outside, he walked down the cement steps to the parking lot. The apartment complex in which he lived in was the old part of town. While they were in the world of the 21st century, the rest were in more “modern” times: hover motorcycles and cars, teleporters replaced the airplane when I was a baby—stuff like that.

He walked over to his black mustang and threw his bag in the backseat. It roared to life and he began heading to Lightwood High. It was nightmare to find a decent parking spot. He jogged to the school entrance, where the automatic doors swung back; allowing him to pass.

“Hey! Ricky-Bobby!” a voice boomed through the crowd of highschoolers. It was Scott Lee, Rick’s best friend since elementary school. His Light-blond, skater style hair bounced as he pushed through the crowd towards Rick.

“Scott! I’m surprised you made it out alive,” Rick teased as they did their handshake.

“I could have died, but I fought through that crowd like a pro,” Scott replied, fixing his hair. He flashed a goofy smile.

“Come on goofball, lets head to class,” They stopped by Rick’s locker and Rick placed his hand on the scanner. It beeped three times before the locker door opened, revealing photos upon photos of Rick and his buddies. There were love letters scattered on the bottom from freshman girls confessing their undying love for him.

“Such an organized locker,” Scott commented. Rick made a face and proceeded to take his math book. He shoved it into his over packed bag and closed the door.

The bell rang just as Rick and Scott stumbled into class. Mrs. Parks glanced at her watch.

“You made it, with three seconds to spare. That makes a new record,” her beady-black eyes looked at them with a bit of disappointment. “Sit down please,” They nodded and walked to the back of the class. They exchanged some high fives and sat down in their seats. Mrs. Parks clapped her hands, calling the students to quiet down. She pushed her glasses closer to her face and cleared throat.

Before she could say a word, the guidance counselor walked in. She mumbled something to Mrs. Parks and left the room.

"It seems that we have a new student that will join us this morning," She said, gesturing towards the door where a shadowy figure stood. The figure walked into the light, revealing a girl with long, light-orange hair; like the color of fall leaves; tied into a pony-tail that came down to the middle of her back. Her hazel eyes scanned the room with no emotion behind them. She wore dark skinny jeans, black turtle neck shirt, and a tan over coat that almost touched the ground. She looked like a character out of a fiction novel.

The class was in complete silence, broken occasionally by the whistling of some boys. The girls were gossiping; probably making up reasons why she is dressed in that fashion. Scott lifted one brow and turned to Rick.

"She looks like trouble. I wouldn't even get close to her." Rick didn't answer. Sure, she looked like a bully or one of those stuck up types. Yet, he was more curious than afraid. She felt like a mystery he wanted to solve.

"I think she's alright," Rick muttered. Scott rolled his eyes and noticed the thinking going on in Rick’s mind.

"Why don't you introduce yourself?" Mrs. Parks said. The girl looked at her, and walked in front of the students.

“Hello everyone; my name is Kat Renalds and I’m new here. That’s all,” She said and glanced at the teacher, letting her know that she was done. Mrs. Parks sighed heavily and gestured her to sit down. Her eyes darted from one side of the room to the other, as if debating which seat would be the best place to sit. Her eyes fell upon Rick. They looked at each other for a bit and Rick could feel his face flush. She smiled sweetly, walked to the seat next to him and sat down.

Rick was a bit shocked. He couldn’t think of anything to say and could feel his face begin to heat up. He usually could care less about girls, didn’t care much about dating. But she’s--different.

“Hey what’s up? You seem like a nice kid,” she said, putting her fist under her chin.

“Oh, not much. And thanks, you seem like a nice person yourself. My name is Rick, Rick Stevenson.” He said and extended his hand. She looked at him and smirked.

“Sorry, shaking hands aren’t my thing,” she pulled her hair over her shoulder and began to braid it. Scott let out a sigh and softly punched Rick’s arm. Rick turned to him, noticing the disgust of Kat on his face. Most often it’s the other way around. He has some female friends, but never particularly tried to date any as most of them weren’t really his type. Scott on the other hand was a ladies man and a big flirt. He figured Kat would just be another victim to his charms but not this time.Kat even gave him a glare, so she must not like his type at all.

“So, maybe after class you can show me around? We might even have some other classes together.” She winked, and Rick couldn’t utter a word. He felt like he was hypnotized, startled that a girl like her would take interest in a guy like him. ‘This is it,’ he thought, ‘this is the excitement I’ve been looking for.’

“How about you find the guidance consoler and she can show you around? Rick is busy.”

“Scott--.”

“Look, I’m not talking to you. So zip it.” She put her fingers on her lips and Scott pouted. The teacher cleared her throat, waiting for them to quiet down. The rest of the day went by in a daze and before Rick knew it, the last bell rang. The halls became engulfed with happy students and the sounds of slamming lockers. He half expected himself to wake up and realize that it was all a dream and Kat really didn’t exist.

The thought quickly disappeared when he saw her standing by the entrance, grinning.