Soldier
Prologue
Moonlight shines down on a clearing not far from the forest's edge. It's a calm night, with the nocturnal creatures performing their nightly symphony. Fog begins to tiptoe around the treeline, tentatively feeling its way among the tree trunks. A breeze whirls the fog and blows wispy clouds in front of the moon. As the light begins to dissipate, the fog slowly creeps through the grass and wind its way higher up the trees. The branches dance in the wind until the clearing is smothered in a white haze and the wind dies down. An eerie quietness settles over the forest. Moments later, the almost dark clearing is briefly aglow before fading into complete darkness as the moon hides behind the thin clouds. Peeking around its refuge, …show more content…
When he steps outside, the shadows begin to gather around him, cloaking his every step. He glances around the sleeping street, ignoring the eager shadows, then releases his wings. With a few quick flaps, he shoots up into the air and heads back into the forest, taking his granddaughter with him.
Chapter 1
Nothing is worse than not getting enough sleep the night before a big day. You can go to bed early, take a nice hot shower, and even take something to knock you out for the night. But nothing is going to help if nightmares come knocking on your door. I'm not talking about the kind that startle you awake or the ones that are kind of scare but you know aren't real. The nightmares I'm talking about are the ones which grab ahold of your mind and refuse to let go. The ones you can't tell are fake. Rather they are so vivid and realistic that you're captured within a temporary reality unable to escape..
It is this type of nightmare I have. It leaves me sleep deprived and not nearly rested enough for whatever today has in store for …show more content…
Even then my body remains paralyzed because it hasn't realized the nightmare is over. I lay drenched in sweat, my breathing heavy, and my heart attempting to beat its way through my chest. When my body finally unclenches, I rub my hands over may face, glad to feel something sold and real.
I can't say I don't have nightmares often, but it has been years since I've experienced this immobilizing one. Fourteen years to be exact. I had nightmares every night before I turned four and it was always the same one. Although I never remembered the nightmare itself, I knew it was the same one because of the jumbled feelings it left in its wake: sadness, anger, fear. These feelings stayed with me throughout the day, making me jumpy and irritable. Sometimes I was unable to operate at
Prologue
Moonlight shines down on a clearing not far from the forest's edge. It's a calm night, with the nocturnal creatures performing their nightly symphony. Fog begins to tiptoe around the treeline, tentatively feeling its way among the tree trunks. A breeze whirls the fog and blows wispy clouds in front of the moon. As the light begins to dissipate, the fog slowly creeps through the grass and wind its way higher up the trees. The branches dance in the wind until the clearing is smothered in a white haze and the wind dies down. An eerie quietness settles over the forest. Moments later, the almost dark clearing is briefly aglow before fading into complete darkness as the moon hides behind the thin clouds. Peeking around its refuge, …show more content…
When he steps outside, the shadows begin to gather around him, cloaking his every step. He glances around the sleeping street, ignoring the eager shadows, then releases his wings. With a few quick flaps, he shoots up into the air and heads back into the forest, taking his granddaughter with him.
Chapter 1
Nothing is worse than not getting enough sleep the night before a big day. You can go to bed early, take a nice hot shower, and even take something to knock you out for the night. But nothing is going to help if nightmares come knocking on your door. I'm not talking about the kind that startle you awake or the ones that are kind of scare but you know aren't real. The nightmares I'm talking about are the ones which grab ahold of your mind and refuse to let go. The ones you can't tell are fake. Rather they are so vivid and realistic that you're captured within a temporary reality unable to escape..
It is this type of nightmare I have. It leaves me sleep deprived and not nearly rested enough for whatever today has in store for …show more content…
Even then my body remains paralyzed because it hasn't realized the nightmare is over. I lay drenched in sweat, my breathing heavy, and my heart attempting to beat its way through my chest. When my body finally unclenches, I rub my hands over may face, glad to feel something sold and real.
I can't say I don't have nightmares often, but it has been years since I've experienced this immobilizing one. Fourteen years to be exact. I had nightmares every night before I turned four and it was always the same one. Although I never remembered the nightmare itself, I knew it was the same one because of the jumbled feelings it left in its wake: sadness, anger, fear. These feelings stayed with me throughout the day, making me jumpy and irritable. Sometimes I was unable to operate at