The Underworld

                                            Genre: Horror, Fantasy, Romance

                                            Name:          The underworld

Summary: This is a story of a girl named Quinn who discovers she's a witch. Quinn discovers both her & her mom are the last remaining descendants of the three Solen sisters. The oldest & most powerful witches of Crimsonville. She discovers that the whole fate of the world depends on the last Solen to re-seal the veil between the underworld & our town to keep the dangerous supernatural entities away from Crimsonville. Alex, Sam & Vivian all accompany her on the journey to fight the enemy, find her mom & save Crimsonville from all danger. They encounter evil witches, sirens, hybrids, elves, vampires, werewolves & more. 

                                         Chapter 1: The strange beginnings

Crimsonville has always smelled like rain & petrichor. Heavy & damp even in the heat of August.

 I could almost taste the wind in the storm as I stepped off the bus.

Crimsonville was a quiet little town where everyone knew each other, felt safe & at home… until now.

The town looked the same but different, familiar yet wrong. The trees seemed taller & their shadows darker, the air was colder & the atmosphere felt eerie. Something had changed, this is not how I remembered the town. I could feel it, it felt different… something much darker.

I hadn’t plan to come back, not after moving to college. Not after what happened to dad & definitely not after Vivian’s drowning.

But I had no choice, not after the cryptic & frantic call from my mother,

My mother’s voice shaking over static,

 “Quinn… baby, you need to come home. It’s… it’s coming undone. They’re crossing over. The seal is breaking…. You’re not safe there, and I’m not safe here…. Listen to me—don’t trust the mirror until the blood glyph glows… Find the journal. And remember—you are Solen.”

She sounded scared, that was two nights ago, haven’t heard from her since. That’s why I’m here, I need to make sure she’s ok.

I clutched my bag tightly as the bus drives away behind me leaving me cold & alone.

My boots crunched over the gravel as I stepped towards home. Every footstep felt like tresspassing. Like I wasn’t meant to be here.

As I passed the rusty “Welcome to Crimsonville” sign-half covered in ivy, goosebumps prickled my arms.

It wasn’t paranoia, it was instinct. And instinct doesn’t lie, not when you’re a Solen.

As I reached my home, I took it all in, the sense of familiarity still there but there was a strange feeling in my stomach like something’s wrong.

"Strange, it’s like the town’s the same but somehow colder & more eerie. It feels weird to be back." I thought.

I stepped on to the porch & took a deep breath. "The house feels quiet, too quiet." I thought.

 I hesitated on the porch, staring at the chipped lavender paint on the front door. My hand half-trembled as it reached for the door knob expecting to see my mother sitting inside drinking her usual herbal tea.

But as I headed inside, I was greeted with cold air & dead silence, no tea, no familiar sweet scent of mother’s perfume, nothing.

The house was undisturbed, no signs of struggle but something was off, drawers slightly ajar & the flicker of burnt herbs in the fireplace. Symbols carved into melted candle wax.

Mother had tried doing magic recently, desperate magic. My innate fear was proven right… Someone had taken my mother.

I started panicking with the sound of my heart beat thumping in my ears as I scanned the whole house thoroughly for any sign of mother. I called out to her as loud as I could, “MOM??? MOM WHERE R U???” but to no avail. I came back to the living room scanning across frantically searching for any sign, my eyes landed upon the slightly ajar drawers & at the bottom of the drawer that’s where I found it…..

The journal…. My mother’s journal…. Bound in cracked leather.

I immediately grabbed the old journal, it felt heavy & powerful in my arms. It felt strange, like it was pulling me in as I opened it, eager to find the answers inside.

I found a note with my mother’s familiar handwriting inside:

“If you’re reading this, I’m already gone”

I sat cross-legged on the living room couch with the journal in my lap & the note in hand. My heart racing as I started reading my way through it with all my focus.

“I don’t have much time. In this journal you will find the answers you need.

I’m so sorry. I tried to keep you safe, but I failed…

 Everything I ever did was to protect you, that’s all I ever wanted. I hope you can forgive me. Please understand.

I love you, be safe”

My eyes teared up as I read the note, I ran my hand over my mother’s writing crying, “I miss u mom….” I sniffled crying. “Where are you….? Please come back…. I miss you” I wiped my tears away as I put the note down & took a look at the journal

My fingers hovering slightly above the page.

 The glyphs inked into these old yellow pages felt like they were vibrating with so much energy. One glowed faintly beneath my fingers, crimson. A blood glyph I let out a soft gasp as my eyes grew wide.

“What the hell?” I whispered.

I swallowed hard, “You’re a Solen” my mother had said.

“No more pretending.”

I inhaled shakily, pressing my palm to the glowing symbol, the world titled & started to fade away as I started seeing visions. It’s like my whole mind & body was filled with this overwhelming mystical energy. I see a memory:

 “Quinn you’re going to school today ok? I don’t wanna hear it” my mother said as she prepared breakfast for me. “Please mom! I don’t wanna go, I hate our english teacher. She’s mean & the kids are mean. Please mom.”

 I pleaded.

“That is no reason to skip school Quinn, you’re gonna be fine, just relax” my mother said over the sizzling eggs on the pan. “I said I DON’T WANNA GO!!!” I slammed my fists angrily on the table with force & let out a scream so loud it left the glass on the table shattered. Mom turned around in panic as she watched me with fear in her eyes. And I sat there confused & speechless, caught off guard by what I had just done.

Then I had another blurry vision:

A face , no two faces, a full moon, A man with glowing eyes like ember & a man with silver hair & fangs. Then I saw three familiar faces of women. I thought one of them looked like me. I saw a war, a kiss, a lake, a scream.

I jerked back & gasped shakily, my breathing ragged. I was so confused, shaken up. “What does any of this mean?” I thought.

Just then I heard someone whisper my name outside, ”Quinn…” I immediately looked towards the back window, heart racing, that’s when I saw him…..

Standing still at the edge of the street under the flickering street lamp, looking at me. Tall, lean figure.

He didn’t move, just stood there staring, like he knew me. Like he’d known me long before I was even born.

Although I had never seen him before…..

I recognized him….

he looked just like the man from my vision….

He didn’t move.

Not when the wind blew his coat back like the wings of something forgotten. Not when the streetlight above him buzzed, blinked then went dark.

He stood there, watching……

Note: This is chapter 1 of the story. I hope you enjoyed <3