Prologue

The world of the Supernatural. Monsters, Magic, and other things that were thought only to live in legends. A long time ago the supernatural and humans lived together in peace. The humans stayed to their land while the supernatural had their own share of land. Some were even revered by the humans as gods and terrible beasts to pay tribute too. Soon after, though, the humans began to be curious and greedy. They expanded their reach to other lands pushing the supernatural back, even killing them. The Greeks and Romans were the start of this. All the tales of the heroes were all true as they fought against these mythological monsters. Some of those stories less true than others. As time went on, the bloodshed grew more and more. Tired of all this war, but at the same time not wanting to kill out the humans, three very powerful kings came together; The Dragon King, The Fairy King, and The Witchkin King. Combining their strong magical abilities the three used all of their powers to create a ward strong enough to keep the humans out. Through certain guarded passageways, the supernatural could pass back into the human world in disguises. This is how the two races lived on for many years, the humans slowly forgetting about the strange creatures, only remembering them in the legends of the ancient peoples. A strict guard was placed at every major exit/entrance to monitor the flow as best as possible. However, there are some rouge angry beasts that have found cracks and small openings that lead into the human world without the watch of the kings. The worst time of the year is on Halloween. On All Hallows Eve, the ward is the weakest allowing more crazed monsters to pass to the mortal world. Due to this, Hunters have been formed to hunt down and bring back, dead or alive, the creatures as to ensure the peace isn’t broken.

Chapter 1 : The Talking Raven

There are many advantages and disadvantages to being dead. The one thing Elden liked about it was not being able to feel pain. As a matter of fact, he couldn’t die as far as he could tell. It all started back in his hometown in Iowa. He was walking to his beat up rusty car one night after work. Before Elden could even reach the rust bucket, some tall dark shadow came out of no where. Elden really couldn’t remember much of what happen that night. It was all pretty foggy. All he did know was that something had attacked him and he had died. Next thing he knew he was in the hospital with his foster parents clustered around his bed. At first he thought it was nothing, but lets just say somethings happened that changed his mind. A few days after he had been checked out of the hospital, Elden had started to notice how fast small wounds were healing up. Even his foster parents began to realize his changes. His strength had increased dramatically and when the moon shone down on him, Elden’s black hair would turn pure white and his eyes would turn a dark blood red. He couldn’t swim any more, like the water made his body freeze up. Everything that was pure iron would burn him if he touched it, not to mention not being able to eat McDonalds fries anymore due to the salt also burning him. Crazy side effects from being attacked by parking lot bears right? Wrong. Curiosity led to him looking up what was wrong with him. Turns out he had all the symptoms of several different supernatural creatures, one stood out among the rest. He was a zombie. Or at least part zombie since he didn’t crave human flesh or mindlessly wander around. In fact, Elden still felt human. He slept, ate, and even had a slight heart beat, which is probably why the hospital doctors weren't freaked out when he walked out of the the hospital.  

Well, that brings us up the present. Elden and his parents had moved from Iowa to Indiana. He was going to start in a new school and a new life. Well, half-life. The house they had bought was small, just big enough to fit the three of them. Elden, being the only child, got the small bedroom next to the bathroom. His foster parents got the only room upstairs, which was the master bedroom for the small house. The kitchen and living room kind of were combined together. It was small, but Elden didn’t mind. It was a cozy little house.

Today was the day Elden Walking was going to his new high school, though it was the end of fall. He would only really be in school for one and a half semesters. Still, his foster parents were set on him finishing high school. Elden could care less about whether or not he finished. He actually didn’t like the place. He really didn’t fit in with the others. Though he had super strength, Elden didn’t look buff at all. In fact he was pretty scrawny and pale looking. The appearance kind of went with the whole zombie thing. He was slightly on the tall side with choppy pitch-black hair. With how dark his hair stood against his pale skin, Elden gave off this eerie look that either made people avoid him or think that he was an easy target to bully. Of course Elden always had a sarcastic remark and a quick getaway plan every time he was cornered. The boy wasn’t a coward. He just didn’t like violence. With his overbearing strength, Elden could easily smash their faces into the nearest wall. Sadly that would end up in a poor human going to the hospital and a one way trip to the police station for the zombie boy.

 Through out most of the day, Elden didn't really talk to anyone nor did anyone bother to talk to him. He wasn't really the loner type, but he was used to people hesitating to come up to him. Once they warmed up to him, Elden was sure he could at least make a few friends. Then again, it wouldn't bother him if he didn't have any friends by the time he graduated. Elden just wanted to lay back, go with the flow, and not stand out. However, fate had different plans for the young zombie and it all started on this day.

"Hello, would you be interested in joining the swim team?" Elden looked up slowly from his book to meet the gaze of a girl. The girl was several inches shorter than Elden, though she held her chin tilted up in a way that told him she wasn’t afraid to take anything on. She had brown bobbed hair, falling just below her chin. In her bright amber eyes Elden could see confidence as well as curiosity. She was wearing loose faded jeans and a white long sleeve t-shirt on under her black short sleeved t-shirt. It was a simple outfit, but all the same it caught his eye.

"The swim team?" Elden asked carefully shutting his book. "Hmm." He acted as if he actually was thinking about the proposal, though the plain truth was that he could never swim again. "I am going to have to turn you down. I can't swim." He went back to read his book, but the girl place her hand over the cover to keep it shut. He looked back up at her.

"I can teach you." She said. A determined fire burned in her eyes now, which made Elden's faintly beating heart sink. She was going to be trouble, that's for sure. "We really need some guy swimmers this spring and I can tell you won't be joining any of the other sports teams." 

"Sorry, but really can't join. Find someone else." Elden sighed. The girl shook her head still looking at him with her amber eyes. If he could swim, Elden would have gladly joined to not cause so much trouble, but he really couldn't. Elden looked away brushing her hand off his book.

"Fine, then I will convince you some other way." She paused for a moment, thinking. "I've got it." She said with a large smile. "Why don't you go to the swim team's Halloween party I am throwing this Halloween? There you can meet the other members and have fun at the same time. If you are still not convinced, then I will give up on asking you to join."

Elden thought a moment. What could be the harm in a little party? His hair and eyes changing color could just be shrugged off as a really cool costume. He shrugged then agreed. With a triumphant smile, the girl stuck out her hand and Elden shook it. "By the way, my name is Ashley Kane, though every one just calls me Ash. If you ever change your mind before hand, just come and find me."

-------

Elden finished his homework easily that night. A lot was going through his mind now and most of it was about that girl, Ash. Right after agreeing to come to the party, she gave Elden her phone number so she could give him the address. After Halloween, he would have to reject her offer once again. He hoped they still could be friends, though. Something about her just was charming. He sat by the open window starring out at the night. He had always loved the night. The quiet it brought after most creatures went to the sleep. The coolness of the night air also seemed to calm him. Elden suddenly noticed a rather large crow perched on a nearby tree. No, it must have been a raven, for crows couldn't be that big. However, it seemed to be starring right at Elden causing a shiver to go down his back. It was kind of eerie. 

"Beware all Hallows Eve. Beware." It cawed loudly causing Elden to jump slightly. "Beware the Hunters. Beware." It cawed once again. This time Elden quickly shut the window and pulled the curtains closed. Taking a shaky breath, Elden decided it was time to go to bed. He clearly needed the sleep.

Chapter 2 : The Party Crasher

The next few days Elden felt on edge. He really didn’t know why, but ever since that raven had talked to him, he had felt like someone was watching him. Not to mention the curious looks he kept getting from miss persistence across the room. Every once and a while Elden would catch Ash looking at him with hopeful eyes only to turn away once her gaze met his. Elden sighed tapping his pencil on his desk. Tomorrow was Halloween and Elden was beginning to second-guess himself. Maybe he shouldn’t go. The raven’s words echoed in his head.

“Beware all Hallows Eve. Beware. Beware the Hunters. Beware.”

Elden shook his head. Birds don’t talk. It must have been a dream. He, then, looked at his hand. Then again he was sort of a zombie, so talking birds couldn’t be that impossible. Elden looked outside the window of the classroom. Standing outside under one of trees was hooded figure. It seemed as though he was looking right at Elden. The zombie couldn’t help but jump back, crashing to floor with his chair. Every one was looking at him now, even the teacher who had stopped mid lecture. Elden would have been beat red if he didn’t have such a faint beating heart.

“There was a bee.” Elden lied, recovering from his embarrassment. He picked up his chair, daring a glance out the window. The figure was gone. With a sigh of relief, Elden sat back down. Some of the students giggled at his clumsiness. He gave a small smile at the teacher. “Sorry about that.” 

The rest of the school day went smoothly. He ended up eating lunch with Ash and couple of her friends. They seemed to like him because of how easy it was to talk to Elden once you got past his appearance. Ash ended up introducing him to two friends. Patrick Francis was the student council treasure. He was an all A student and kind of a stickler for following the rules. Sarah Wood, on the other hand, didn’t take any sports at the school. Instead she was taking karate classes after school. At the same time, she wasn’t very good at studying and was an average grade student.

“What’s wrong Elden? You look a little on edge today.” Ash said braking Elden’s train of thought. He couldn’t tell them that he thought someone was stalking him or else they might think he was nuts. “Don’t tell me your nervous for the party?” She said with a sly smile.

“You got me. I really don’t have a costume for the party. Only some hair dye and different color contact lens.” Elden said with a nervous laugh. Ash placed a hand on his shoulder which made him feel like electricity went down his arm. Still, he didn’t pull away. 

“Don’t worry, just use what you have. Its better than nothing, right?” Ash said. Elden nodded giving her a reassuring smile.  

The next day flew by. School was like a blur to Elden. He hadn’t seen that hooded figure last night or that day, so Elden was feeling a bit more relaxed. Patrick and Sarah also were going to the party, so it wasn’t as if Ash was the only one he would know at the party. He was actually excited to go. That creepy raven’s words were slowly being forgotten and Elden had no objection to it.

That night, Elden was getting ready. He threw on a black t-shirt and jeans, putting no real effort into making a costume. A soft knock at his door drew his attention and his foster mother walked in. She had a worried look on her face. He knew what this was about.

“Hey Mom, what’s up?” He asked casually. She glanced at he floor nervously then walked over to him. Elden was a few inches taller than her, so she had to look up a bit to meet his gaze.

“Just be careful with your hair and eyes, okay?” She said fixing his hair. Elden smile softly, grabbing her hand. He gave her small hug then pulled away walking toward the door.

“I’ll be fine, don’t worry about me.” He said. She nodded as he walked out the door.

----

If Elden had to describe the house in one word, it would have to be big. It was a two-story house with a large yard and a pool in the back. Of course there had to be a pool for a swim team party. Elden mentally slap his forehead. He rang the doorbell and in a matter of seconds the door swung open. Ash was standing there in a witch hat and cape. She gave a big smile as soon as she saw Elden.

“About time you made it.” She said. “Is that your bird?” Elden glanced over and almost jumped in shock to see the same raven from the other night sitting on the rail. It was looking at Elden expectantly, if a bird could do that. Elden scratched the back of his head.

“I guess.” He said without thinking. Right after the words came out he regretted them. With that, the raven jumped onto his shoulder. If he didn’t know better, he would have thought the black bird had a smug look on its face.

“That’s cool, I didn’t know you had a pet crow.” Ash said moving out of the way so Elden could step inside. The raven fluffed up it's feathers obviously irritated by the girl's comment. Hesitantly he walked in, not really feeling comfortable having the bird on his shoulder. “Neither did I.” Elden mumbled as walked through the house toward the back where everyone was. There were a few people in the pool. The others were either standing and talking to someone or dancing.

The moon did catch on him as stood outside. He had to explain on several occasions that it was simply hair dye that turned a different color in the moonlight. Luckily no one really wanted to know how it worked, so they just left it at that. Elden made sure he stay a safe distance from the pool so no one would get any funny ideas. However, his luck didn’t last. He did end up a little too close. A girl ran by being chased by her boyfriend in a small game of cat and mouse. Elden lost his footing and tripped over a poorly placed towel. Before he knew it, he was splashing head first into the pool. The raven had conveniently fluttered away before he hit the water.

Elden sunk like lead to the bottom of the pool. His limbs and joints stiffened so he couldn’t move. ‘Crap’ Elden thought. ‘This is exactly what I was trying to avoid. Hopefully someone saves me before I stay down here longer than a human can.’ He suddenly saw a figure dive in and grab his arm. Soon another pair of hands found his other arm and he was dragged to the surface. They laid him out on the ground. Elden choked out water. Even though he couldn’t died from drowning, it was a bit painful on the lungs.

“Elden, are you alright?!” Ash asked poised for CPR. Elden held up his hand to stop her. “Yeah, thanks.” He said. “Told you I couldn’t swim.” Ash blushed a bit.

“Your really heavy.” Another voice said. Elden looked over to see it was Patrick who had helped Ash drag Elden out of the water. Elden chuckled sitting up. The raven hopped over Elden and held out a wing pointing at something. Elden looked over to see the hooded figure in the crowd of kids. It was as if they couldn't see him. Elden got up onto his feet, his stomach doing a small flip. The raven flapped back onto Elden’s shoulder.

“Beware.” It whispered. Elden began to sprint. He had no destination in mind. All he knew is he had to get away from that hoodded figure. He climbed over the wood fence and began to head straight for the woods. Yes, not the smartest decision for someone being chased, but Elden really wasn’t thinking straight. It was as if he running on instinct. “Where are you going, fool?” The raven cawed.

Elden suddenly stopped, starring at the bird, who had been flying next to him. It landed on a nearby stump. “What are you and why can you talk?” Elden asked. The raven fluffed up its feathers clearly annoyed.

“My name is Age and I am your familiar. All familiars can talk.” The bird replied calmly. Elden racked his brain. He had read something like that when he was looking up his ‘condition’. Familiars were demon servants that usually took the form of animals. That was impossible, though. He never summoned or made a pact with a demon. Elden’s head was reeling now. What was going on? He thought he was just a half-dead person. Now he was some sort of witch?

Rustling in the bushes made Elden jump. Before he could move, someone came out of the underbrush breathing heavily. It was Ash. She had followed him out here. Elden relaxed a little bit. “Ash, what are you doing here?” He asked glancing the sides half expecting the hooded figure to be in the shadows. She caught her breath and looked up at him. “I should be the one asking that.” She said in a stern voice. “You just ran off like a bat out of hell. What happened back there?” She asked.

Before Elden could answer, someone jumped down from the trees. It was the hooded figure, though now his hood was down. It was a boy about two years younger than Elden. He had wavy black hair and very dark sapphire eyes. He had a bow and in an instant an arrow was in Elden’s chest. It really didn’t faze the boy since the arrow tip wasn’t iron. The boy scowled in disappointment. Ash screamed in surprise. “Run you fool!” Age cawed flapping his wings. Elden turned to run, but was caught by the boy roping him around the ankle. He was strong for his size, causing Elden to trip and fall. Next thing the zombie boy knew, the attacker was on top of him. Using the butt of his sword, he gave a sharp blow to Elden’s head. Stars dance across Elden’s vision and he blacked out.

Chapter 3 : The Other World

Elden woke up tied to a wooden post. He was feeling a bit groggy and confused on where he was. When his head cleared, Elden realized he was in some sort of prison. Not only was he tied up, but he was also behind iron bars. Great, it had to be iron of all things. The last thing he could remember was that boy. Elden quickly looked down to see a hole where the arrow had ripped his shirt. The wound, however, was already healed.

“Yes, you did capture the zombie, but was it necessary to get the Witchkin? She is probably just a second or third generation. Probably doesn’t even know she has magic in her blood.” Came a gruff voice. Elden strained forward to see who was speaking, but couldn’t get a good look. Elden struggled to loosen the rope. Even though he had monster strength, the rope was tightly bound.

“How was I supposed to know?  I felt magic from her and thought she was an accomplice. We can let her go, right. Just speak with the Guardian, I’m sure he’ll let her go back home.” It was a younger voice now speaking. After a few more tugs, the rope broke. Elden crawled forward, careful not to touch the bars. “There was a familiar there, so for all we know she could have reanimated the boy.” Elden now could see who was talking. It was the same boy who had attacked him in the forest. He was talking to a very large muscular man. He had bushy black hair and large side burns. Even his arms were hairy. Not someone Elden would want face in a fight. The large man noticed Elden and motion toward him. The younger boy looked over and glared at the imprisoned young man.

Elden sat back fear rising in his chest. Who were these people and what did they want? The wavy haired boy walked over and crouched in front of the cage. His dark sapphire eyes bore into Elden like a laser. “Um, hello.” Elden began, keeping a calm appearance. He had always been good at hiding his emotions. “If you don’t mind me asking, who are you people and why have you kidnapped me?” Elden asked getting straight to the point. The other boy didn’t answer right away.

“We are Hunters.” The boy said. “Our job is to hunt down things like you and drag you back over the Rift.” The boy explained. That didn’t answer anything. In short they were monster hunters and Elden fit right into that category. The only thing that didn’t make sense was the rift thing he mentioned.

“Okay, then what do you do with things like me after you captured them?” Elden looked the boy straight in the eyes trying to read him. The boy stood back up scratching the back of his head.  “Don’t know” He sighed. “Usually we hand you over to the kingdom of your origin, but their isn’t a king in the Xymis territory.”

“We’ll have to ask King Mardler about this. We haven’t had many of the Xymis creatures cross the Rift lately.” The older man said. “The names Arden and this here is Kieran.” The man said resting his arm on Kieran’s shoulder. The boy quickly shrugged the arm off.  Arden gave a small laugh. “You got a name, boy?”

“Elden Walking.” Elden said. “I have to be honest with you, I have no idea what you’re talking about. The Rift, Xymis, King Mardler. This is all really confusing.” Elden needed an explanation and Arden seemed to be much more talkative then Kieran. Even their names sounded odd.

“Listen here boy,” Arden said pulling over a chair. “You probably turned when you were over in the human world, so this might come as a bit of a shock. Right now, you are in the world called Hallow. This is where all the supernatural creatures you hear about in stories come to life. The human world, which we call Eve, and Hallow are separated by a magical barrier called the Rift. It’s what keeps you humans out.” Elden sat back a bit over whelmed by this new information. Sure he always knew that there had to be other supernatural creatures out there, but never did he imagine a whole other world existed.

“Why did you bring me here, then? I was born and raised in the human world. You can’t just take me from there.” Elden said. “ I have friends and family that will be looking for me.” Elden was right, of course. Even if his foster parents were not his real parents, they still really cared for Elden. They still loved him even after his accident changed him. Arden sighed, rubbing his neck.

“They’ll never find you and you will never go back. You are a zombie and they are human. The supernatural and humans need to be separate.” Kieran cut in. “I anyone found out what you were, then you’d become a lab rat and our world could be discovered.” Elden opened his mouth to say something, but closed it instead. He had a point, but he really was worried about his foster parents.

“H-hello. Is anyone there? Where am I?” Elden’s heart jumped as soon as he heard the voice. It was so painfully familiar he wished he hadn’t heard it here. It was Ash.

“Ash?!” Elden jumped forward grabbing the bars unconsciously. The iron burned his hands causing him to quickly release the bars. It was annoying that the only pain he could feel was the burning from iron and salt. “What is she doing here? I thought you were only after me? Ash is just a human.” Elden growled dropping his calm act.

“Yes, we were just discussing that. Seems to be that she is part Witchkin. One of her parents or grandparents probably fled to the human world and settled down with a human. It’s rare, but sometimes Hunters make mistakes.” Arden said looking at Kieran. The other boy looked down at his feet. “Don’t worry, the King will probably let her go back home. You, on the other hand, can’t go back. Too inhuman.”

Elden sat back dazed by the sudden turn of events. A few days ago he was just trying to finish up high school. Now he was in a completely different world. He looked at his burned hands. It was true he didn’t belong in the human world any more. He didn’t want his foster parents to get hurt. It would be best if he just stayed here and learned about this world. Ash, on the other hand, needed to return. Elden suddenly heard a dog barking outside. Arden and Kieran looked at each other.

“If Lucy is barking, then that must mean we have an unwanted guest. Why don’t we go greet them.” Arden said with a smile. Kieran nodded, glancing once at Elden. Elden just gave him a weak smile and a shrug. “Don’t worry, I don’t think I will be going any where.” They both left in a hurry, Kieran grabbing his bow and sword while Arden just grabbed a large battle-axe.

As soon as they left, Elden stepped as close as he dared toward the bars looking for Ash. From this angle he couldn’t see her cell. “Ash?” He called out softly. At first he didn’t get an answer making him think that he imagined Ash was the other captive.

“Elden? Is that you?” Ash finally replied. Elden took a step forward almost touching the bars again. He restrained himself and took that step back. “Yeah, are you alright? They didn’t hurt you, did they?” He asked. Again there was another pause.

“Y-yeah I’m fine. Where are we?” She asked. Elden really wanted to make something up and tell her it was all a bad dream, but something told him she wouldn't believe him. Elden ran his fingers through his hair and paced his cell. Might as well tell the truth.

“Well, you might not believe me, but we are in another world.” He began. Elden explained everything Arden had told him. After he had explained everything he knew, Elden waited for her to laugh or say he was crazy. That’s what a normal girl would do. He even half expected her to cry, but then he realized Ash wasn’t that weak-minded.

“Okay, say I believe what you just told me, why would they capture us?” She asked. Before he could answer, Ash suddenly gasped. “That’s right, they hit you with an arrow! Are you all right? It’s no infected or anything?” Elden almost laughed. She still had enough energy to worry about others. That was one of the things he liked about her. She always had that bright energy that kept her going.

“I’m fine. To tell you the truth, I really am a supernatural creature.” Elden paused to see if she would say something. She didn’t. “A few months before I moved to Indiana, I was attacked in a parking lot. The thing is, I died. Now I am sort of what you call a zombie. Well, half zombie really. I still eat and sleep normally. I even have a faint heart beat. I just have all the weaknesses and advantages of a zombie.”

There was silence. She was probably processing everything he just told her. Finally she spoke. “You don’t eat brains do you?” Now Elden really burst out laughing. “What? What’s so funny?” She asked, the embarrassment sounding in her voice.

“Nothing, really. I just wasn’t expecting that to be your first question.” Elden said through his laughter. He calmed down after a few seconds. “No, I promise I don’t eat brains.” He said. “Though now you know why I can’t swim. Zombies get paralyzed if submerged in water.”

“Oh, I had no idea.” She said. He could tell she was feeling a little bad now for pressuring him to join the swim team. Elden let out a sigh. “It’s no big deal.” Elden said. “You couldn’t have guessed I’d be a zombie, so don’t feel bad about it.” They sat talking for a bit. All they talked about was little things about how it was like being a zombie. Elden explained his annoyance of not being able to touch salt and iron. He talked about his inhuman strength and other benefits to this ‘condition’. He even told her how his hair and eyes changing color was part of it all. What made him really happy, though, was that Ash didn’t seem to be creeped out by him at all. In fact, if Elden didn’t know better he would have thought she was fascinated by the fact he was a zombie.

   Loud growls and fighting suddenly cut their conversation off. The fighting sounded like it was close outside. Both Elden and Ash listened in silence as the fighting went on. After a while, Kieran burst in the door short on breath. He ran to the keys and grabbed them. The boy then hurried over to Ash’s cell first, unlocking it in a rush. The sound of fighting became fiercer. Elden stood up and stood next to the bars to look a Kieran. He looked tired and drained. Under his cloak Elden noticed his shirt had blood on it. Next, Kieran unlocked Elden’s cell motioning for the zombie boy to quickly exit.

“What’s happening?” Elden asked as Kieran was quickly grabbing supplies and packing them in a bag. He didn’t answer, only focusing on packing. He then led the Ash and Elden to the back door. Ash gave Elden a worried look. Something was terribly wrong. “ Kieran, what happened?”

“Golems.” He said leading them out of the door and into the forest. 

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Publication Date: 07-09-2013

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