Dreamer

4.

The crickets chirping are the only things to be heard, as I sit outside the corridor waiting for grandmother to be back from where she has gone.

I lean on the wooden barricade staring into the woods, hoping to see grandma coming anytime soon, because she doesn't take this long on just going to get some curry for the chicken.

I told her to let me go instead, that I'd be faster, but grandmother insisted she goes as she hasn't stepped foot outside the house today, and it would be a good way for her to stretch her legs.

The lights illuminating the outer parts of the house begin to flicker, making the environment seem darker for no longer than a second, but those seconds makes my heart creep with fear, as staring into the woods just makes me imagine things of fear.

I tap my feet impatiently, as fear begin to rise up inside me. I decide to look in the woods one more time, and if I don't see grandmother, I'll head back inside and wait for her.

As I look into the woods my gaze lands on something moving briskly, and as soon as I see it, it is gone. My eyebrows furrowing together as the building up fear in me, does nothing less than escalate.

The lights flicker again, as this time it goes dark for a longer period. My eyes on the bulb and the woods as they go from one another. They finally end on the woods with the environment dark, making the moon shining, the only light prominent.

A rush in the woods pass through as my heart jumps and my feet yelp on their own, and adrenaline begins surging through me. I don't have to be told twice as my legs find their ways to the door.

My eyes still peeping through the door wanting to see clearly of what the rush of the dark woods is about, when my eyes comes in contact with something.

I can't quite place what it is, as my gaze stays focused and my eyebrow furrows on the red bright gazing light in the woods, and if I didn't know any better, I would say it looks like a pair of eyes.

My heart racing as though, there's no more space in chest, as my hands tremble on the knob of the door, and more adrenaline fills me as the light begin flickering again, making my attention turn back to them.

They finally turn back on, while my gaze diverts back to the woods, realizing that the red light which I once saw is no longer there.

"Okay that's it, I'm locking the door." I mutter to myself not understanding what's happening anymore, and when I almost turn my back completely, I sight grandmother coming.

"Grandmother," I call as she's sees me and smiles at me, while I go to her to take the basket in her hands. "What took you so long?" I ask her.

"Oh I'm sorry my dear, Macarena didn't want me to leave after I got the curry from her, as she made me leave with some vegetables." Grandmother says.  "Did I keep you worried?" She asks as we reach the porch.

"Very worried Grandma, I thought I was seeing things," I tell her as grandma laughs lightly.

"Oh Atheena," Grandmother say as we get into the house.

"I mean it grandma, I thought I saw a pair of red bright eyes," I say picking out the vegetables from the basket. "The lights were flickering, and the woods were really dark and... " I stop talking raising my head from the vegetables which I begin picking, to look at grandma with a stiff and sore expression on her face.

"Grandma?" I call her seeing her paused trance. "Grandma?" I call again dropping the vegetables and walking to her.  "Are you alright?" I touch her as her face softens but still with something I presume to be fear on her face.

She turns to me as her gaze on me scares me. "What did you say you saw Atheena?" Grandmother asks me seriously.

"Nothing really grandma, I thought I saw a pair of bright eyes, but I was probably imagining things, it was dark of course," I shrug my shoulders telling my worried grandmother.

"No Atheena, I don't think you were just seeing things," She says making me furrow my eyebrows.

"What are you talking about grandma? I'm sure it was just the fear messing with my mind or even if I did see something maybe it was a torch," I tell her chuckling softly.

Grandma stays quiet as she just stares at me with weak and pitiful eyes. "Can you tell me what you said you would tell me that happened in school today?" Grandmother asks me as that takes me back.

"Maybe later grandma, let's get the food ready for now, I thought you said you haven't eaten?" I say still getting back to the vegetables, as grandmother's sudden behavior baffles me.

"We can eat later Athena, we need to talk about it," Grandma says.

"But grandma it can wait, you need to eat something..."

"And I would eat soon, but I need to know what happened in school," She says coming closer to me.

"Is this about what I said I saw grandma, because I'm not sure. I told you I was just seeing things," I tell her again.

"But what if you're not just seeing things Atheena," Grandma takes me off with her statement as I stare at her perplexed.

"What are you talking about grandma?" I ask her.

"I would tell you all about it, but you need to tell me about what scared you so much at school," She sides my question again, placing a hand on top of mine.

"Okay," I nod nevertheless as grandma passes me a weak smile. I begin to explain it all to grandma, from the time when I dreamt about the new boy at school, Orion, and seeing him today, along with the voices that kept screaming in my head

And when I'm done the look on grandma face scares me, as her hands behind to tremble lightly. "Grandmother, is everything alright?" I ask her now worried.

"Oh my... Atheena... " Grandmother puts a hand on her temple. "I tried... I tried to avoid this... I really did," Grandmother says making me more and more perplexed and not to talk about worried.

"Grandma, I don't understand what you're saying?" I put a hand on her. She removes the hand from her temple as I find some stains of tears in her eyes. "Grandma," my voice coming low as I call her.

"Please tell me what's going on," I plead as my worry only grows.

"Let me see, let me see it Athena," Grandmother says taking me by surprise.

"See what? What are you talking about?" I ask the same question again.

"The mark on your chest Athena," Grandmother says and my eyes go wide.

"What? What mark? I don't think I told you about any mark grandma," My gaze still with confusion as grandma stays silent.  "Grandma how did you know I have a mark on my chest?" I ask her knowing that there is something I do not know.

"I will tell you everything Athena, but first I need to be sure, I need to see it,"  She tells me as her hand caress mine with rush trying to soothe me.

Being the fact that it's my grandmother, and that I trust her with my whole life, I nod my head fevetly at her.

I pick the first three buttons of my shirt as I open them one after the other, revealing the growing circular mark with drawings and lines on my chest as I show it to my grandma, and at that instant I watch her face fall as tears fall from her eyes freely.

"Oh...Athena," Grandma holds her face as she sobs.

"Grandma what's wrong?  What's happening to me?" I ask her as fear begins filling me and my eyes breeding with incoming tears.

"What did I do?" my voice comes low again as this time a tear slips out.

"Oh no...no... My dear child none of this is your fault, none of it is... It's just destiny, destiny picks whoever it wants and we have no say," Grandmother says.

"I don't still understand grandma, I don't understand anything, what does that have to do with me? Why is all these happening to me, and why do you feel sad and fear for me?" I ask her as grandma only nods her head looking at me. Her hands move to my cheeks as she caress them lightly.

"There is a prophecy Athena. A prophecy that talks about the chosen one, the saviour and the destroyer." I stare at grandmother as all she is saying are sounding like a foreign Language to me.

"A prophecy? What is that? And what does that have to do with me?" I ask with tears coming out.

"Just listen to me okay? Let me explain it to you from the very beginning," Grandmother says as I nod my head listening.

"You remember the world I told you about? Cyrus?" Grandma asks me as I nod my head positively. "Athena, it's not just a story, but it's real." She says and my eyebrows furrow.

"What? A world with magic is real grandma?  Please stop this if you're joking," I say to her.

"How can I play with such Athena. Everything I am telling you is true and I would like you to listen to everything I have to say because we don't know how much time we have left," She says and I nod my head negatively trying to argue. "Please just listen to me," She assures me again as this time I stop and listen to her.

"In Cyrus, there is a prophecy, a prophecy that was revealed a century ago.

'The one who would be born to save and destroy at the same time. Born with the power that could destroy or save a world, and such power which could also be death of the chosen. The one who would either bring the unity or diversion of the two worlds, bearing the mark of the circle of Articus'. That's how it goes."

"And that person is you Athena. You're the chosen one." Grandmother says with her gaze hot on me while I only stare at her with fear and confusion.

"No... I... I... don't even understand anything about this prophecy or no prophecy," I tell her truthfully as grandma sighs bitterly.

"It says Athena, that there is a chosen one who is to come or in this case, has already arrived. It says he or she would be the Savior of the world but could also be the destroyer, that's if the gift of the chosen doesn't kill he or she before then, and he or she would be known by the mark of the Articus they bear, or in other words, known as..."Grandmother looks at me with eyes filled with fear that I have never seen in my entire existence.

"Known as what grandmother?" I ask her fearing my answer.

"Known as 'daemonium rex', The demon lord."