Midnight's Gift

T. Sendi

Description

Welcome to the world of Cipher Of The Elders, where the unexpected is always just around the corner. In "Midnight's Gift," sixteen-year-old Catherine Forbs finds herself facing a series of strange and unsettling events. At first, she thinks she's going crazy, but she soon meets Brenda and Trevor, who show her that she is not alone. As she learns to control her newfound abilities, and unfold the secrets that lie within Ohethen, Catherine discovers that the unnatural can be both thrilling and dangerous. so will she be able to defeat the darkness with their help before it's too late?

Sujets

• Young Adult Fiction
• Años 50
• 50s

Informations

• Publié par: Archway Publishing
• Date de parution: 24 avril 2023
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781665742733
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 2 Mo

Extrait

Midnight’s GIFT
 
Cipher Of The Elders
 
 
 
 
 
 
T. SENDI
 
 
 
 
 

 
Copyright © 2023 T. Sendi.
 
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
 
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
 
 
 
 
Archway Publishing
1663 Liberty Drive
Bloomington, IN 47403
www.archwaypublishing.com
844-669-3957
 
Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.
 
ISBN: 978-1-6657-4274-0 (sc)
ISBN: 978-1-6657-4273-3 (e)
 
Library of Congress Control Number: 2023907527
 
 
 
Archway Publishing rev. date:   04/21/2023
Contents
Beginning
Chapter 1       Midnight
Chapter 2       Controllers
Chapter 3       Dear diary
Chapter 4       William who?
Chapter 5       Twin
Chapter 6       Foresthill forest
Chapter 7       our story
Chapter 8       Southbush
Chapter 9       Clueless Two Sides
Chapter 10     Dorothy
Chapter 11     Tunnel
Chapter 12     The Imperiums
Chapter 13     United again
Chapter 14     Who is the real enemy?
Chapter 15     Uncle jack
Chapter 16     War
Chapter 17     Rebuild
Chapter 18     School play
Chapter 19     Not yet
Dedication
To whoever finds a home in my words. But most importantly, to pops, who isn’t here to witness the outcome of his endless support.

prologue
Beginning
IN A FARAWAY land behind the wide sea. A kingdom has been created; Ohethen .
It was created over five years ago by an assemble of absconding youth of orphans from all sorts of nations and backgrounds. As the years passed, those teenagers became adults with families of their own, which led them to scatter around the land, some went north, and some went south.
It’s an unknown land by the outlanders, it took more than a hundred years to reveal the existence of Ohethen . But till this day, not anyone can cross its borders.
The outlanders believed that Ohethen has existing abnormality for so many generations, believing that you can find it if you look close enough. But not soon after, this belief turned into a myth. A fairytale.
But is it really just a myth?
chapter one
Midnight
IN A WIDE, dark, and empty passageway, Catherine Forbs stood. It was a place she did not recognize. Her pulse was beating rapidly; air was barely able to reach her lungs. She felt as if she was dying slowly, losing the ability to breathe with every inhale. It felt as if an invisible stone was on her chest, making it hard to breathe.
Her eyes opened wide. Staring at the familiar white ceiling filled with her drawings made her realize that it was nothing but a dream. Yet it was still hard to breathe. How could it have been just a dream? She sat up and removed the cover off her before the cold ground met her bare feet. Her digital clock informed that it was 12:00 A.M. Brand new day—October 10, 1954 .
My birthday , she thought . My sixteenth birthday. Sweet sixteen to me, I guess…
She slid the curtains open, and then unlocked her window hoping to get some fresh air, but it did not help; it was still hard to breathe. She rushed down the hall and pushed open the bathroom door, and immediately sat on her bathtub’s ground, letting the cold-water drip on her; fully clothed. She lifted her head up, eyes closed, taking in the feeling of the chilly water running down her face, soaking her, removing the heat she felt moments ago. She stayed there in silence, not knowing what was going on.
Why was my room hot as hell? She wondered. W hy do I feel like I am burning slowly from the inside?
After a long moment of silence under the running water, she reached for the faucet to stop it from dripping, ready to get out of the tub and forget whatever madness she was feeling. But as she reached for the faucet, the water stopped without her having to turn it off. She scratched the back of her head in confusion, but the lack of sleep made her ignore the unexplainable occurrence and stripped out of her wet clothes and changed into dry ones.
She climbed back onto her bed with so many questions and thoughts crossing her mind. She closed her eyes, ready to sleep and escape this puzzling night, but apparently her brain disagreed; it was wide awake, and she knew there was no way for her to go back to sleep. So, she got up and tip-toed down the stairs and into the kitchen, not wanting to wake her uncle. She picked up her coffee mug and made some to sail her through the night.

Eight more hours.
She counted down the hours till her school day would begin, the last day of her junior year. She was not sure how the years flew by so fast. She will be a senior next year, which is a scary thing indeed. You see, the years cross by without realizing, and the next thing you know, you are at an infirmary ready to die.
Catherine went back upstairs and started drawing in her sketchbook. She found herself sketching the dark passageway she had dreamed about. She stared at it like it was a familiar place, It felt like she had been there before, not only through that dream; but as if she had once walked through that in real life or perhaps she would one day. She shook the thought away and opened her wardrobe to pass some time by picking her outfit for the day—beige khakis and a tank top since it was a bit hot outside.
“Nothing has changed,” she spoke as she looked at herself in the long mirror; her black curly hair fell naturally over her shoulder. She had hazel eyes, that her uncle never stopped reminding her of the similarity that hers had with her mother’s eyes. That is why it was her favorite feature of hers. “Just a different number.”
Time passed slowly that she felt every click of every minute.
“You are up early,” Jack, her uncle, said. “I usually have to snatch you off your bed.”
“Yeah, well.” She shrugged. “Last day of school…”
He nodded. “All right, go on then. That would make your principal happy.” He joked.
“Right.” She chuckled as she got up and walked back downstairs with him. “Remind me how often she has called you to complain about that matter again?”
“More than I could count.” He let out a breathy laugh.
She chuckled as she headed to the front door, thinking he’d forgotten about her birthday.
But before she could step out, he said, “Happy birthday, Catherine.” And he handed her a stuffed animal.
“What’s this?” she asked. It was wearing a dress; it was in a good condition but looked quite old.
“I was at the attic yesterday, going through some stuff when I found this,” he said. “It belonged to your mother—well, before that it was given to her by her mother.”
“Thank you,” Catherine said, not knowing what else to say. “Thank you truly.”
“Hello, Mrs. Coleman.” She smiled at her neighbor who was watering the plants like she always does.
“Oh, hello, dear!” she said with a warm smile. “Ready for your last day of school?”
“Yes!” Catherine said enthusiastically. “Let’s hope they don’t give us summer homework.”
“I hope so too,” Mrs. Colman said. “I can’t seem to see more of you with all these assignments they give you.” she looked at the sky, It seemed like she was looking into a memory. “Remember when you were younger? When I was able to run?” She chuckled. “We used to have fun running around the field over there.” She pointed at the green field behind their neighborhood that was not visible from here, but Cathy knew what she was talking about. “Didn’t we?”
“We did,” Cathy replied. “Fun times without the reality of misery.”
“No, dear,” she sighed. “Don’t say that. You will finish school in no. I believe you will have a glorious path ahead of you. Wait and see.”
Catherine smiled and nodded. “I sure hope so,” she said. “All right, I have got to go now.”

The Hill-High sign became clearer as she walked closer to her school.
“Catherine Forbs at last!” a soft voice spoke, and she immediately knew it belonged to Dorothy, her blonde-haired best friend.
“The birthday girl has arrived!” Added Ann, the black-haired best friend.
Catherine smiled at them both as she approached. Ann was wearing a dotted black and white dress, which was not a surprise since she wore it almost every day. This one in particular, has a special place in her heart since it belonged to her mother. She lost her at the age of seven. Unlike Cathy, she’s been an orphan for as long as she can remember.
“Ready for your party?” Ann asked.
“Party?” Catherine questioned. “What party?”
“Your birthday party, duh?!” Dorothy said, pushing Cathy playfully.
“Right.” She nodded. “My birthday party, one I don’t recall throwing.”
“Of course you don’t, we are throwing it...”
“But I do not wish to have one if I am being completely honest with you.”
Dorothy and Ann broke into laughter, but they soon stopped when they realized that Cathy was being serious. “Seriously?”
“Mhm,” Catherine nodded.
“Nonsense!” Dorothy exclaimed. “You are going to have a party. It is not under discussion. You and I both know how much you love birth