Vanished

Prologue

The rain swept across the dark suburban street as Rhan made his way past the dimly lit houses, his arms swinging loosely at his side, his mind deep in thought. Water dripped down his brow and trickled delicately across his face as he searched the street for the number written on a ripped piece of paper. It was a strange feeling; he imagined on leaving that he would surely never return. It was simply too dangerous. There were too many risks. He had to keep his family safe. But time had passed, and four years on the army had not pursued, the veil had not been lifted, and now here he was, only metres from the house. Katherine, he thought. He could imagine her hair, her eyes, her smell; they had changed him the first time he met her; they had shown him that humanity was worth more than the sheer energy they possessed, that there was value in their very existence that his people simply could not comprehend. It was more than just interest. It was an intoxication, something he couldn’t shake, couldn’t place at the back of his mind.

Rhan was scanning the houses when his number came into view, seven, displayed on a rusty green mailbox outside a quiet suburban silhouette. He ran his fingers across the course metal surface and stared at the house beyond, his imagination swimming at the thought of sitting on the grass as Katherine lay in his lap, his son playing in the yard. His son. He remembered the letter he had received. He didn’t know how she had reached him, but the news was simply too much to bear, too much to allow him to stay away any longer. He took a step towards the house, up the narrow driveway, his hand rising lightly from his side.

‘Alaria,’ he whispered, and a green light flashed from the palm of his hand and spread out towards the horizon. The rain began to slow, and the wind began to calm. Within seconds all was quiet, all was still, and he felt the peaceful tranquillity of the frozen world around him, his vision slightly hindered by the still raindrops waiting patiently in the air to resume their descent.

‘You haven’t lost your touch, Rhan,’ a voice called from behind, and Rhan jumped at the sudden disturbance. He turned on the spot to see the general of the Vel-tren Army only metres away.

‘You have taken longer than I imagined, Elrhanti,’ Rhan replied, trying to remain calm while casually stepping away from the rusty letterbox to avoid suspicion. How long had the general been following him?

‘Unfortunately, we don’t all have your ability, my boy.’ Elrhanti was still, his hands behind his back, the picture of discipline and authority that Rhan remembered. ‘It took years to summon the energy to raise the veil, and even now it can only be raised enough to take you and Ra’id back to our world. There is more work to come before we can begin the harvest.’

‘We both know that I’m not coming back.’

‘I didn’t say that you would return alive,’ Elrhanti sneered.

‘You don’t have the power to control me, Elrhanti. You never did.’

‘Things change.’ Elrhanti raised his hand in a flash. ‘Inverium,’ he called, and Rhan suddenly felt his body tense, his arms freeze from his control, and his heart slow. He struggled, summoning all of his power to release the general’s grip, but something had changed; something was different.

‘What have you… ?’

‘It’s impressive, is it not?’ Elrhanti smirked as Rhan’s eyes darted left to right. There was no way out. He knew that his time was about to end and thought of his wife and son, helplessly frozen from time, frozen from the events which were unfolding only metres away.

‘Where is it, Rhan?’ Elrhanti’s eyes began to glow a fierce red as his hand tightened into a fist, and Rhan could feel the life escaping him. He didn’t speak. ‘Where have you stored the power of the elders? Where is Ra’id?’ Rhan’s eyes were hard as he looked back at his old teacher. As a child he would have given up, but now he knew the truth. He could see the ambition lurking behind the general’s calm and feared the results for both worlds should Elrhanti ever gain power.

‘I should have known you’d have your own agenda for coming here, General.’ Rhan tried to move, but it was hopeless. ‘But the power of the elders won’t help you when he comes.’

‘What have you done, Rhan?’ Elrhanti’s eyes tightened. His grip was suddenly stronger. Rhan felt his shoulders tense as the bones pushed roughly together. ‘What are you hiding?’

Rhan struggled to pass air into his lungs, his breathing short and erratic. The general would receive no more help from him; he would take his secrets to the grave. Elrhanti’s eyes were fierce, his temper rising. ‘Your pilgrimage has come to an end, and once I have the power to lift the veil, the harvest will begin. There will be no stopping me then.’ The general quickly twisted his fist, and Rhan closed his eyes as his final breath escaped him, a green flash exploding from his body, releasing the rain, the wind, the plants, houses, and humans he had frozen in time, and the world resumed as though he had never existed, painfully ignorant to the force that was about to strike.

Chapter 1

It was the first Monday in weeks that Alex hadn’t needed to be dressed ready for school. He slept in a few extra hours and woke up to the sound of the television near his bed hissing. He opened his eyes to see the static sparkles glittering on the screen.

‘Mum!’ he yelled in a croaking voice. There was no reply. ‘Mum! Have you made breakfast?’ Alex’s voice was slowly returning to its normal state, but there was still no reply. He crawled out of bed and threw on a pair of dirty jeans from a pile on his floor. He rubbed his eyes and looked briefly in the mirror that hung next to his door as he passed out of his room, heading towards the kitchen. The house was silent, not a sound to be heard anywhere. Alex stepped into the kitchen to see a frying pan on the stove with a spatula and two eggs sitting on the nearby bench. Alex’s mum usually cooked eggs in the morning, but the pan wasn’t hot, and the stove hadn’t been turned on. Alex was nervous.

‘Where is everyone?’ Alex mumbled to himself. He searched the house, checking the bedrooms, the study, and the bathroom. He even looked under the lid of the toilet in the case that someone had shrunk to miniature size and drowned in the bowl. He began to feel dizzy; his palms were becoming sweaty, and he could feel that he was starting to panic. Just then, he heard a loud CRASH! The ground shook, and the ceiling above him made a strange creaking sound. He could hear movement on the roof of the house, CRASH! CRASH! The sounds were spread apart as though something was walking; Alex grabbed his cricket bat, which had been left leaning against a corner in the house, and moved cautiously towards the laundry door. He quietly unlocked the door and pushed it open. The hinge squeaked loudly, but there was no sign that he had disturbed anyone. He took a step into the backyard and turned his head up towards the roof of the house; there was nothing. He moved out of the house and darted towards a nearby bush. He scanned the houses around him. Nothing! By this point, the sounds had stopped; the neighbourhood was silent. He didn’t hear any human activity, no cars, no pets; he didn’t even hear the next-door neighbour’s lawnmower, which ran all morning on any other day.

Alex moved around to the front of the house. His feet were cold and wet from the grass; he was still wearing the old pair of smelly socks that he had slept in. As he moved around the house, he saw a large truck parked on the road. He leaned in towards the wall so as not be seen. The area seemed to be abandoned, not a person in sight. He moved out from the house and inspected the truck. It was old and rusty around the wheels, and it was big, big enough to move a whale if it needed to. Alex looked down the street; there was nothing but empty houses and parked cars.

Chapter 2

There must be a parade going on in the city or something, Alex thought to himself. It was too quiet and too deserted to be just a coincidence. Something was different. There had to be a special circumstance. Entire suburbs didn’t just disappear. Alex turned back to inspect the large truck. It had to hold some sort of answer as to what was going on; it was the only clue Alex had.

He moved up to the truck slowly to get a better look. He approached the vehicle from behind, gradually moving away from his house. He held his cricket bat tightly in both hands as he moved, inspecting the side of the truck, hoping to see a logo or some writing—there was nothing. Alex was now closer to the truck than his house. His feet were making a slushy sound as he stepped lightly on the wet grass. His socks were beginning to stick to the bottom of his feet. He approached the side of the truck next to the passenger door and leaned towards the window to peer inside the driver cabin. Alex leaned his cricket bat against the side of the truck. He had to lift himself on to a large step that hung beneath the door in order to see clearly into the window; he peered in and inspected the cabin.

It was dark inside, and Alex found it difficult to make out the strange glowing console inside the truck. He was confused; it appeared as though the old truck had been upgraded with some kind of fancy new stereo. There were green lights blinking where the air conditioning controls would normally be, and the steering wheel looked like a video game controller, Alex tried to squint through the glass to make out some of the controls, hoping to see what they actually did, but he couldn’t make out enough detail to understand anything. Who would put such high-tech gear in such an old rusty bucket? Alex wondered. It was clear that this was no ordinary vehicle; there was something strange about it that made Alex think it didn’t belong in the Adelaide suburbs.

Alex climbed down off the side of the truck, thinking about where this mysterious vehicle came from. As he thought for a few moments about the strange situation, he heard a sudden scraping sound echo from the other side of the truck. It didn’t sound too close, as though it may be coming from a house across the street, but he couldn’t see past the giant vehicle that had been parked between the two houses. Alex edged quietly around the front of the truck to gain a better view of the sound. He was being extra careful. Something didn’t seem quite right. He peered around the front headlight towards the house on the other side of the street and saw a large man in a strange black coat, the source of the sound. The man was tall, taller than anyone he’d seen before, seven foot tall at least. He was bald, and his skin was white. It was strange to see someone with such a pale complexion here in Australia, in summer. But his unusual appearance wasn’t quite as unsettling as his actions; the scraping sound was being caused by something he was dragging along the driveway towards the truck. Alex remained hidden. He couldn’t make out exactly what the man was moving, but he could see that it was a large black bag.

Chapter 3

An unsettling feeling started to tingle in Alex’s stomach. The man was slowly moving towards the truck as he dragged the large black bag, and Alex knew that he would either have to move away to hide somewhere out of sight or stay and make contact.

The scraping sound was drawing nearer by the second. The man wasn’t looking in his direction, but Alex could sense that it would only be a moment before the man was too close for him to escape if he needed to. Alex thought carefully about what to do. Surely it’s better to talk to someone than to hide away wondering what’s going on, he thought to himself. If I can get any answers, it will be worth it. Alex considered the events so far; he didn’t understand what was going on and was becoming worried. He needed some information. He’s probably a friend of the Hissy family across the road, probably helping them pack for a camping trip. Ignoring the unsettling feelings in his stomach, Alex slowly moved out from behind the truck into view of the tall bald man. The man was still dragging the large bag across the street and was now only a few metres away.

‘Um, excuse me…’ Alex spoke with a nervous voice. As soon as the man heard the sound, he dropped the bag and flicked around to look at the source. Alex froze as the man stared at him with a hard set of glowing red eyes. Alex felt his body tense up at the fearsome sight of the man’s pale-faced glare. He couldn’t move. He was breathing with a sudden intensity, and his bottom lip was shaking. Without a word, the man slowly stood up straight, keeping his eyes fixed on Alex the whole time. He slowly raised his arm and pointed his open palm towards Alex.

‘Ecsteeza,’ he muttered a strange word that Alex had never heard before, and a sudden glowing light began to shine between his fingers. Alex was shocked; whatever was going on wasn’t normal, and the unsettling feeling that had been tingling in Alex’s stomach became an overwhelming burst of fear. Alex stepped backwards slowly, trying to create more distance between him and the man. The stranger stared intently at him, but as Alex began to move away, the man seemed to become confused or frustrated. He threw his hand down to his side and closed his eyes as though concentrating or thinking. A moment later, he stretched out his hand again and whispered the strange word; his palm began to glow.

Alex took a few more steps away from the man.

‘What are you doing?’ Alex yelled nervously. The man became angrier. He threw his hand down once again and started moving towards