MY LUNA IS A HYBRID

NADINE “Is this the last of them all? Make sure you don’t spare anyone.” The man said furiously. His figure, huge and domineering. I watched him say those words to them as I huddled in the shadows of the back door, my heart pounding so loudly as I covered my mouth and bit my lips hard to keep me from screaming and from being caught. I watched as the bodies of my family laid lifeless in the room. My eyes watered with tears. I bit my lips so hard that I could feel the taste of my own blood. This wasn’t what I expected to see a few minutes ago while I stood up to go get my father his journal. The whole family was lively. “I can't stay here. Not with them so close.” I took a deep breath as I gently pushed the door to open. As I grabbed the door knob, with sweaty palms, I carefully and slowly twisted it to the side, praying and hoping that it wouldn't creek. It became hard all of a sudden. “Please!… please! …..please! not this time.” I whispered to myself as I stood there gazing at the door and thinking of the possible ways to escape as the door became hard to open. I struggled and pushed again and the door moved just a fraction of an inch. “Thank goodness it worked," I said as I felt a rush of relief within me. As I turned to make my way out of the back door, my fathers journal I had in my hand slipped out of my grip and tumbled on the floor, hitting the polished wood with a loud sound that echoed through the hallway. “What was that?” a man's voice caught sharply through the silence. “I heard it too over there, through the hallway.” another voice replied with irritation in his voice. “Go immediately and make sure no one is watching us.” the first man commanded almost immediately. My blood ran cold as I heard the heavy footsteps of one of the men approaching me. I quickly pressed myself against the door and blending myself into the shadows. “I think I heard the noise from here," one of the men uttered. “I could swear, I heard something," the second man muttered as I heard his voice close to the door. Check it out! My eyes went wide open in shock. I bit my lips harder to avoid letting out any sound. The taste of my own blood, sharp on my tongue and my breath shallow. The footsteps stopped just on the other side of the door as I could see the shadow of the man's feet beneath the door frame. I squeezed my eyes shut, praying earnestly that he wouldn’t open the door. Just before I could get my thoughts together one of the men interrupted saying, “There’s nothing here, let's just go back.” He said dismissively. “Are you sure?” The second man hesitated. “Yes, come let's get out of here. We don’t have time to chase ghosts, they are all dead.” The second man grumbled. They both hissed,turned and left. “That was so closed.” I said, heaving a sigh of relief. I stood motionless for a while till the voices faded away while gazing at the wooden wall clock that hung with stains of blood right in front of me. It was a m******e! When the coast was clear, I turned back to the door, this time with caution. I pushed the door gently and when it opened an inch, I squeezed myself out of the room, casting a glance over my shoulders into the dark hallway to ensure no one was watching me. I tiptoed out of the house through the backdoor barefooted. I knew the forest was dangerous, but that was my only safe haven. As I ran, I felt the sharp pain of thorns shooting up my legs as the sharp edges of branches whipped at my face and arms, tearing my skin and my clothes but I didn’t stop running or even dare to look back. Tears streamed down my cheeks. I made my way through the forest as fast as I could to avoid being caught. I couldn’t get the vivid picture of having my whole family slaughtered like mere animals in the zoo. Behind me, the terrifying voices sliced through the night like knives. It was distant but yet terrifying. I felt them close to me with every step I took. Their laughter was a chilling reminder of the horror I had just witnessed. “Who could that man be? Why would he choose to melt so much pain on my family?” I questioned myself as I continued to run harder. Soon, I arrived at the forest not knowing how long I had run. It was already dark. The forest wasn’t any way better though it was best that I ran for safety. The moonlight struggled to penetrate the thick canopy of branches overhead. The ancient trees lean on each other as if conspiring against an intruder. The silence of the forest was oppressive and it was only broken by the chirping sounds of wild birds in the air and the rustling of dry leaves on the ground. I knew I was already deep into the forest and soon enough I would get caught. “Which of these pains would I have to bear for so long. The thought of losing my whole family? Or the thoughts of being called a rogue? Or better still be killed by rogue hunters.” I will have to keep my life a secret and start afresh. Perhaps the moon goddess will be fair to grant me a better ……. Ouch…..! Before I could finish processing the thought in my head, I was taken aback with a loud scream when my foot caught on a twisted root and I fell to the ground. I fell face flat on the ground, dry leaves pressed against my face. My head hit hard on the ground and for a moment I laid down there trembling, my fingers shaking with fear as I fought the urge to let out a scream. I struggled to stand up on my shaking legs like one who had seizures. When I remembered there was no time for pain and weakness, I forced myself to continue running but the more I tried, the more I became weak. All of a sudden my vision became blurry as the trees around me began to spin in dazzling circles. Weakness and fear overwhelmed me and before I could steady my legs, I crashed on the ground and everything became dark.