The Bow

July 19th, 2008

The sun shone brightly in the bright blue, cloudless sky. The young girl sat down, eyeing her surroundings skeptically. Everything about this seemed off; something wasn’t right.

She clutched the note from the small, brown paper boxed package she had received in the mail just days previous. She had read it so many times, saying it was committed to memory would be an understatement. She memorized the entire letter; analyzing it until her brain felt sore. The only thing the small, brown paper boxed package contained was a note. This gave her an intense burning sense of curiosity; why not just send the note?

The note was short and to the point. It had come in the mail just days shy of her eighteenth birthday. The young girl couldn’t begin to explain why she chose to follow the instructions; to meet by the giant rock at the side of the creek, just a few miles from her home. It was unaddressed; and regardless of how much she tried, the writing did not seem in the least bit familiar.

It was neat cursive writing, something she knew most people she knew did not do on a regular basis. Taking it away from her chest, she eyed it over again, looking to see if there had been any clues to the identity of the mystery writer she may have missed the first thousand times reading it over.

Please meet me at the big rock by the creek. You know the one close to your house. 2pm. Do not, under any circumstances be late. This is very important. See you then.

She shook her head in frustration, sighing heavily. Eyeing her watch, her heart began to race rapidly in her chest; it was 1:58 pm. The note was very specific about being on time; she hadn’t moved from her seat on the rock since noon.

“So I see you know how to follow instructions; this is good” a strange voice startled her out of her thoughts. She looked him up and down, gulping nervously. “You don’t need to worry; I’m not here to kill you, if that’s what you think” he added with a soft laugh, running his hands through his long, brownish hair. He was admittedly handsome; tall, with soft features and the darkest brown eyes she had ever seen. He looked to be older; perhaps in his twenties.

The young girl laughed; the thought had not even occurred to her, in all honesty. The man stood before her, a bow in his hand. Her eyes widened in shock; could it be...?

“Before you say anything, yes it is. And no, it is most certainly not a legend” he laughed upon seeing the girl’s dumbfounded expression.

“Wow” was all she could muster, admiring the bow from its current safe distance. Everyone had told her it was a legend; an urban myth; something a group of bored teenagers cooked up to instill fear. “And it chose me?” she asked, the reality finally sinking in, the expression on her face changing immediately from fascination and curiosity to fear and panic. She no longer felt the same surge of excitement she initially had felt; being given this bow was one of the worst honors she could think of.

***

“Can you please explain this to me again?” she asked with a look of sheer confusion. The man rolled his eyes, clearly agitated with the young girl’s continuous need to ask questions.

“It’s simple” the man replied through gritted teeth. He handed her the bow slowly with a smirk, taking him back to the moment he had first received the mystic bow all those months ago. She inspected it carefully, trying to determine if this was some sort of trick.

Reluctantly, she took the bow out of the stranger’s hands, instantly feeling warmth spread throughout her entire body. The situation had caught her by surprise. One of the last things she had expected was to be standing in front of a stranger, holding the mystic bow.

“Not so bad, huh?” the man smirked, startling the young eighteen year old from her consuming thoughts. She gulped, nodding nervously; she knew what was going to happen next.

“I- I guess so” she stuttered softly, still admiring the bow with fear in her eyes. “So, what do I have to do?” she asked again, this time with a little more confidence in her voice.

“It’s simple; you fire the bow” the man shrugged, a small smirk playing on his lips when he noticed the eye roll he had obtained in response to his obvious less than intelligent answer.

“I think I figured out that part for myself, thanks” she sneered, unable to keep the sarcasm from escaping with each word she spoke. “Sorry” she added quickly after, noticing the grimacing expression on his face. His brown eyes narrowed, staring at her so deeply she shivered.

“See this arrow?” he asked, ignoring her comments. She nodded in understanding as he pulled one single arrow from behind his back. “You need to fire it. It doesn’t necessarily have to be right now; you have a year.” He began to explain. “Personally, I think you should shoot it right now”

“Right now?” She gasped. Her tiny delicate hand flew up and covered her mouth, her eyes watering up with tears. “Do I- I mean...” she trailed off, unsure of how to ask the question that began to burn into the back of her mind.

“I can already assume you know the consequences if you don’t” he reminded her sympathetically. Admittedly, the choice hadn’t been easy for him to make all those months ago. He struggled, just like now; just like the poor, young girl was currently doing.

He knew exactly what was going through her head; he had been there. The young man fought internally with himself when he was told who the bow was destined to go to next; he didn’t want to see somebody go through the pain and torture of such a grueling decision. But there was no evading it; the choice had been made; it was destiny.

“I do” she finally whispered, looking up to him, reaching her hand out to grab the arrow. “I guess it’s now or never” she sighed heavily.

The man smiled half-heartedly; in truth he had mixed emotions. He knew he had no choice, however; he knew the consequences of going against destiny. The longer you kept the bow in your possession without firing it, the worse the consequences.

The young blonde girl got ready, and without even so much as one flinch, fired the arrow directly above her and watched it as it soared high into the bright, blue sky, disappearing from sight.

“Don’t forget, you’ve got a year to pass it on to somebody else” the man spoke, interrupting the thoughts of the young girl.

“What do you mean?” the young girl asked, feeling even more confused. “How do I know who to pass it off to?”

“You ask a lot of questions” the man frowned, slightly irritated. “You’ll know, trust me”

“How long?” she asked in an emotionless tone; the only question left intruding her mind. After all, the easy part had been completed.

“That’s the beauty” the man smirked, placing a hand on her shoulder as support. “It could strike at any time”

Chapter One —> here