Outcast (CONTEST: A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words - 1/7/2021)

She sat on the edge of her bed, knowing that her world would never be the same again. Why her? Why now? When things in her life seemed to be going so well. She was an ace student highest in her class, was headed of to the college of her choice once the semester ended. Had a group of friends who had stuck with her through thick and thin from elementary school, and her best friend Jessie would be going to college with her in the fall. Would they all stand with her now? Would anyone? What about Tommy? Would he still love her?

It started last tuesday week, she fell into a sleep and awoke within a dream. An unknown malevolent force stalked her through dark corridors of an unfamiliar place, the faster she tried to run the slower her feet moved, like wading through water with baggy clothes on. With each step she forced herself to make, the stalkers footsteps grew louder. She could hear its raspy breath increase in rapidity as he closed the distance and prepared to strike. There was no escape, no hiding and she knew it. Steeling her nerves, she braced herself to stand her ground and turned to face the pursuer and ............. Thats when it happened, her dormant powers surged forth with the destructive force of a lightening storm. Jolting upright in a fright from the dream, she found electricity swirling all around, encompassing her.

She had always known the possibility was there, it was in her genetics. Her family's deep dark secret. The mutated gene only affected the rare breed, popping up only once or twice a generation, but lately the mutation had become less and less rare. Her mother, three out of five cousins, her oldest sister all cursed with the power, and now her.

It always began the way same, with terrifying dreams, and then it grew and grew until it overwhelmed and became uncontrollable, destroying everything around the cursed until eventually it destroyed them. There was no known cure. Anyone who showed the signs became an outcast. It was the only way to keep others safe.