The Last Hybrid (Working title, so it will just be under Argen's Adventures) Chapter 1

The small clearing of nature stood regally as if it had its own sort of pride, showing off its overgrown abundance. Weeds had become one with flowers and the wispy grass was at least a foot tall. Among the green strands lay a mess of dark hair, pale skin and bright brown eyes that reflected gold in the sunlight. With one arm draped over her forehead to block the sunlight from her vision, and one leg propped up on a rock, she lay in the grass undisturbed. She soaked in the sun, the bright colors of her red shirt, true blue overalls and eye-catching yellow sneakers contrasting her otherwise monochrome appearance.

Argen stared up at the sky, the ends of the grass dancing against her cheeks as it bent and snapped in the breeze. The air was crisp with a slight, refreshing chill, and when the wind moved you could hear the quiet woosh that followed. The warmth of the sun blanketed her skin, and she would lay there forever soaking it up if she could.

She heard her mothers uneven steps from inside their tiny, overrun cottage. Plants and vines of all kinds grew up, down and all over the little house, the greenery being a part of its charm. A giant vine had even grown in the track of the sliding doors on the side of the house, rendering it unable to close completely, or lock for that matter. The expanse of land that their property stood on was peaceful and quiet, which made it easy to hear everything.

Even though Argen so desperately wished for noise.

For something out of the ordinary, something different from the peace and quiet that had become the only sound she heard.

From the few stories Mother had shared, the outside world was noisy, but dangerous, or at least it was before everything collapsed. Any conscious, living thing was rare now, and most plants had gone extinct. The life of the world had been wiped away when the barrier between the spiritual and physical world was destroyed.

Humans were just a thing of fiction now, well, other than Argen’s father. She stretched her hand up towards the sky, trying to fist the air as she stared at her hand. I wonder what humans looked like. Maybe they had horns, or wings, or maybe they were just like smoke and untouchable. Maybe I even look just like Dad…

Argen sighed softly, dropping her arm back onto her forehead, fisting both hands.

Now, if Mother would just let her see Father, then she would know what humans looked like. She hadn’t had any contact with her father since she was two, since after her second birthday they decided there was a risk that Argen would remember him. So, they shifted into the familiar schedule that was now Argen’s life.

For as long as she could remember, ten minutes before midnight, every night, Argen and her mother would say quiet goodbyes. Then there would be a creaking of the sliding door, which signaled the appearance of Crow and Raven, the two bird-like yokai’s who never told her where, but would always take her outside the barrier.

The barrier was what she called the invisible wall that contained everything inside of their property, keeping anything outside from coming in, and keeping anything inside from leaving. Even though Argen went beyond the barrier every night, she could never remember anything of what she saw. As soon as she stepped outside of the barrier’s line, she would immediately lose consciousness. No matter how much Argen tried, it would only ever let her cross over and leave if she was with Raven and Crow. She knew this since she had once been a bored and curious child with nothing better to do than defy rules she found unjust.

Argen had tried many things in her youth, such as stacking boxes on top of each other as high as she dared to climb, attempting to jump over the wall. Sadly, this only resulted in a broken arm. She soon gave up after many more failed plans, another notable one being the idea to dig an escape tunnel under the barrier, which proved unsuccessful.

Argen’s whole life was spent confined within these invisible walls, not knowing anything outside of her mother and whatever was in the house. Everything she saw past the property line was an illusion, but at least she had a lush, protected home, instead of having nowhere to stay in a lifeless, expanse land.

“Argen! Come help me with dinner please!” Her mother, Melverosa, called from inside the house. With a quiet grunt Argen slowly stood up, brushing off her knees before twining her fingers together as she stretched her arms upward to loosen her stiff limbs. “Coming!” She called, trotting over to the only patch of grassless ground, a slow smile spreading across her face.

You left feathers in my room again. Come clean them up you slob.

Her familiar handwriting greeted her from where it was etched into the small clearing of dirt, laying as a message in the ground. A response was inscribed with messier handwriting into the dirt below her own words, her smile growing ever-bigger as she read it.

Get over it. Fill up your pillow or something, I’m not your maid.

Argen snorted softly at the reply, bending down and grabbing a familiar stick, erasing her first message before writing her latest response above the lower line of words.

You’re right, you’re dinner. Birdbrain.

Satisfied with her retort she dropped the stick, standing back up and wiping her hands on her jeans as she jogged the short distance to their side door, sliding it open before closing it again. She turned right, entering straight into the kitchen where her sickly, yet still beautiful Mother stood, gripping her wooden cane.

Her mother had once been a pinnacle of beauty, sharing the same milky white skin and dark as the void black hair with her daughter, equipped with a contagious smile. However, this was only the mother Argen had seen in pictures, since her deteriorating health had aided the decline of her demeanor. The woman who had once stood out among the muted colors of their home had now bled into it, becoming her own shades of monochrome.

“Hi Momma,” Argen greeted her mother, giving her a small kiss on the cheek before making her way to the sink to wash her hands.

“Good evening, Argie. How was your time outside?” Melverosa responded, hobbling her way over to the dining table, carefully lowering herself into one of the chairs. “Fine, same as usual,” She answered, drying her hands on a towel before looking over at her mother. “How are you feeling?”

“Well, I’m fine, same as usual.” Melverosa told her with a glimmer of humor in her small, rare smile. “But to give you a real answer, I’m not any worse, and for me that's a win-” She was cut off by a shuddering, hacking cough that ravaged through her body, blood splattering all over the house’s wood floors. Argen was immediately at her mothers side, gently pressing the towel she had been using into the older woman’s hands. “Here, use this mama. I’ll clean it up, don’t worry.”

“Thank you,” Melverosa whispered weakly, quickly covering her mouth to keep the floor from further falling victim to the spraying of blood. Argen glanced at her mother with a worried expression, her hands grabbing a fresh towel from one of the kitchen drawers. This was another one of their daily routines, her mother assuring her that she was fine, even though her illness and body insisted otherwise.

“You need to rest more, Momma. If you don’t you’re going to get worse, and there isn’t anyone who can give you the help you need.” Argen fretted, bending down to wipe up the blood, giving careful but quick attention to each spot. Her mother sighed. “I was going to, but we’re having guests over today-”

“Am I going to meet Dad?!” Argen asked quickly, whipping her head towards her mother, meeting her eyes with a curious sort of desperation. Melverosa’s face fell and she shook her head, setting her bloody cloth on the table. “Argie…you know…you know you can’t meet him.”

A silence hung between the two, both of them trying to mask whatever they were feeling to spare the other.

Argen stood and turned away, walking over to wash the bloody towel in the sink, trying to hide her disappointment from her mother. “Who is coming over then?” She asked, setting the towel aside after washing it. She then began taking care of the dirty dishes in the sink, unable to face her mother. “Crow and Raven. But you love them, you’ll have fun, I promise.” Her mother murmured, staring down at her feet.

“Don’t worry Mom, I’m fine.” She gritted out, wincing at her tone.

“Argie…I…I’m sorry you can’t meet him…b-but you won’t need to worry about, or even think about him anymore.” Melverosa responded in a hushed whisper, wringing her hands in worry.

“Oh, and why is that?” The younger girl asked, drying the current plate she was holding.

“Because we’re moving.”

CRASH