The Golden Keepers (The Golden Keeps Book 1)

by EMA LEE

  “Keep going Sarah” I said trying to encourage her.

  We finally reached the top of the hill and saw the ship getting ready to take off. I started to run down the hill with Sarah and Mother by my side.

  “BANG”

  The explosion had hit the top of the hill. Rocks started to fly everywhere. I tried to duck my head so I wouldn’t get hit but a rock the size of my fist smacked me right in the middle of my back. I could feel the sting on my back as I continued to run. We finally made it to the bottom of the hill and ran towards the ship. I looked over to see if Sarah and Mother were still with me, I saw mother but there was no Sarah. I stopped and turned around. Out in the distance I could see Sarah. Her leg was stuck under a rock. I started to run towards her when I saw her put her hand up telling me to stop. I could see her lips moving.

  “Go to the ship now!”

  My heart ached. I turned towards my mother who was standing next to me and continued to run to the ship. I could hear a voice coming from the ship

  “Ready for take off in 5…4..3..2…”

  I screamed as loud as I could

  “WAIT!”

  We jumped on the ship as the doors were shutting.

  “1..”

  The voice finished and the ship started to move upward. I looked around as we entered the ship. I started to count how many people were in the ship. There are twenty-five people inside, only twenty-five. I saw two opened seats next to a window and proceeded to walk to them and sat down. I looked out the window and saw Sarah. She was trying to get her leg out from under the rock. I started to cry, I wasn’t able to help her. The space craft hung over her ready to shoot.

  I woke up looking around the room in the old abandon house, tears covered my face. I really missed Sarah, she was my best friend and I couldn’t save her.

  “You were crying in your sleep Astra” Mother said while looking at me.

  “It was just a bad dream. I will be alright”

  I told her as I got up and dressed myself for the day. I put on a pair of white shorts and a light blue tank top.

  “I’m going to go into town” I said as I combed my hair.

  “Alright, I will see you this evening then!” Mother responded.

  I left the house and started walking along the beach. The sunrise was beautiful, it seemed to help make my memory fade. Being here made the memories disappear. I guess that was the good thing about Earth. I finally reached town and started to look at all the buildings. There was a restaurant, a little gift shop, a school, and a surf shop. I decided to walk into the surf shop and take a look. There was a girl who looked about my age at the cashier desk she was tall and really skinny. She had long blonde wavy hair and big brown eyes. She was wearing a grey tank top with a skull on it and coral shorts. You could tell by her skin and the way she looked that she was a beach bum.

  “Hi! Welcome to Brunswick’s Surf Shop! My name is Cali, how can I help you?”

  She seemed very friendly.

  “Uh, yeah. I was wondering if you guys were hiring.” I said while crossing my fingers behind my back hoping she would say yes.

  “Actually we are looking for someone to work during the day with me. Do you think you could start tomorrow?”

  Wow. I got lucky.

  “Yes! I will be in first thing tomorrow morning. Thank you so much!” I said with excitement.

  “No problem! So, are you new here?” Cali asked.

  “Yeah, my mother and I moved in yesterday.” I responded.

  “Sweet! Well, before you go you should check out our swim suits that are on clearance over there” She said while pointing to the back of the store.

  I turned around to look then turned back to her

  “I don’t have any money.” I said feeling quite ashamed.

  “Nah, it’s all good! We will just take the money out of your first paycheck. If you’re going to live in this town, you are going to need a swimsuit.” She said while laughing.

  I guess it couldn’t hurt to take a look.

  I walked to the back of the store and started looking through the swimsuits, that’s when I found the one. You know when you look at something and that feeling of “I don’t care how much it costs it’s mine” comes into your head. Well, that’s exactly how I felt at that moment. It was a blue bikini covered in lace and I was in love with it.

  “Ding”

  I looked up to see that someone had entered the shop. It was Dillan.

  “Oh hey Stra!” He said while looking at me.

  Stra? Is that what he is going to start calling me? I’ve never had a nickname, I did kind of liked it though.

  “Hey Dillan!” I responded.

  “Yo Dillan, meet the newest employee here at the shop!” Cali said while gesturing me to come over.

  I walked up to the register while holding the blue swimsuit.

  “So you work here now? Sweet! I come into the shop a lot! When do you start?” Dillan asked.

  “I start tomorrow.” I said.

  “Well, you’ll do great! That’s a nice suit Stra.” Dillan said while pointing at the swim suit I held in my hands.

  “You’re going to need it” he said as we winked at me.

  “I’ll catch you guys later! I’m off to the beach! See you later Stra!” Dillan left the shop.

  “You know Dillan?” Cali asked.

  “Well, I met him yesterday on the beach.” I told her.

  “I’ve never seen Dillan so in to a girl! That’s pretty good Astra! I think I just might approve, but we will have to get you on a surf board before I make my final decision.” She said while smiling at me.

  “Ha, well I’m going to head off. I will see you tomorrow morning.” I told her.

  “Okay! I will see you tomorrow! Enjoy the suit!” She said while waving goodbye as I left the shop.

  I walked through the picket fence that led to the beach. I was so excited to tell mother I got a job! I started to run down the beach until I reached the trail that led to the house. As I walked through the door to the house I sang

  “I got a job! A glorious job!”

  She laughed

  “Yay! That is so great Astra!” she said.

  She told me she also found a job as a waitress at Brunswick Café.

  “Now we have a place to eat food!” She said.

  We both laughed while sitting in the bedroom. I guess things aren’t so bad here. Things were really starting to look up for us.

  Dillan

  Later that evening I decided to go out to the beach. I put on my new blue swim suit and covered it with my white shorts and blue tank top then left the house. I went and found a spot on the beach to sit down. I was able to see Dillan surfing with his friends a little ways down from where I was. He wasn’t half bad on the water. It was fun watching him swim out in the ocean, wait for a wave, then paddle as fast as he could to keep up with the wave so he could stand up and ride it.

  As the sun started to set he got out of the ocean with his board under his right arm. He looked down the beach and saw me. Dillan smiled and waved! I smiled and waved back at him then looked out towards the ocean to make it seem like I wasn’t out there just to see him. After a few minutes passed I looked over again where he and his friends were but he wasn’t there anymore. He must have left. I continued to look out at the sun that was setting over ocean, burying my feet in the sand.

  All of a sudden I felt massive arms pick me up from behind and start carrying me towards the ocean. The next thing I knew I completely submersed in the water. I started to swim up to the surface. Once I reached the surface I turned around. And there he was. Dillan started swimming circles around me.

  “I told you you’d be needing that suit” He said laughing at me.

  I couldn’t believe he threw me in the water!

  “Ya, but usually I take my clothes off before I swim” I told him sarcastically.

  We both started to laugh and play in the water. I wanted to push Dillan under water but I knew I coul
dn’t let him now the strength that I had. I started to push lightly on Dillan’s shoulders making it seem like I wasn’t strong enough to do it. I eventually decided to shove the water in his face while he was laughing. That seemed to get him good! Unfortunately for me I didn’t see what was coming next. He took me in his arms and tossed me as far as he could in the ocean. We called it truce and started to swim towards the shore. Once we got to shore we walked up to the warm, dry sand and sat down. The sun was starting to disappear. Dillan gave me his beach towel to dry off since I didn’t have mine. I dried off my legs and arms and then gave the towel to him to dry off his face.

  “So Astra, How old are you?” Dillan said while drying his hair.

  “I am 19 years old good sir, what about you?” I asked.

  “Good sir? I don’t think I’m that old yet! Ha ha. I’m 22.” Dillan said while smiling at me.

  Gosh he always smiles at me. And I love it!

  “I love your name Astra… it’s unique. What does it mean?” Dillan asked curiously.

  No one has ever asked me that question. It’s nice to feel so important.

  “Well, my parents always loved looking at the stars together. And the name Astra means “Star” in Greek. So they decided to name me Astra, my dad actually used to call me his little star when I was a girl.” I said looking up at the sky.

  Even though there were no starts out yet. Then I looked at him

  “What does Dillan mean?”

  He grinned. “I thought you’d never ask! Well, my parents are surf junkies and wanted to name me after something that could be relevant to Surfing. In Welsh, Dillan means “Oceans Son”. I grew up loving the water, and practically live in it. So I guess that name fits me pretty well.”

  “It’s perfect for you.” I said.

  We stared at each other for a moment. Dillan looked at my curls and started to play with them.

  “I like your wavy hair”.

  Chills shot down my arm as I felt his fingers run through my hair. I kept staring at Dillan admiring the beauty that he was. He then took his hand and ran it up and down my arm. He looked over at me and started to lean his face closer to mine. Our faces were inches apart and I could feel my stomach twist. I couldn’t keep the words in. They just fell out of my mouth,

  “Um, I have to go. My mom is probably wondering where I am, it was nice seeing you again!”

  I got up off the ground and started to leave. Dillan sat on the sand looking very confused but let me go. He yelled out

  “I’ll catch you later Stra!”

  I started to walk to the house. I really liked Dillan, but we are from two different worlds. It would never work. I know this is my new world but I can’t be this satisfied already! I mean, come on. You don’t lose your home and your best friend and then be happy about it a week later. Dillan was going to kiss me, and I totally blew it! I guess it was for the best though. I walked into the house and saw my mother sitting in the kitchen.

  “Hi honey! How was your night? How’s Dillan?” Mother asked.

  “It was okay. Dillan is good.” I answered her with a mono tone.

  “Oh, did something go wrong?” She asked.

  “No, my mind is just full of emotions. That’s all. I’m going to bed, I’ll see you in the morning.” I said walking off to bed.

  Mother watched me walk away and said

  “Well, okay. Good night sweetie.”

  Breaking News

  The next morning I ate breakfast at mom’s restaurant.

  “Are you doing okay Astra? You were quiet last night and now you haven’t touched the food on your plate.”

  I looked up at my mom. “Yes, I’m fine.”

  I looked down at my food again. And I could still feel my mother staring at me.

  “Okay fine, I don’t know how I should act here on Earth. I feel like I should be upset that our planet is gone, but I want to be happy because I like this planet, but I feel like it’s too soon to be happy. Do you know what I mean?”

  My mother laughed and responded

  “Girl, you think way too much! Live in the moments and be happy here! This is your new home. You deserve to love your new home.”

  Mother started to walk away to clean a table that some customers were sitting at. Maybe she is right. I should live in the moments and love them. I can’t go back to Saruta. I loved everything I had there, now it’s time to let go of the past and start loving everything I have in the present.

  “No way!” A girl yelled while walking past me.

  I looked over to see where the she was going and saw everyone crowded by the Television. Mother went to grab the remote and turn up the volume. I started to walk towards the crowd to see what was going on.

  “This is breaking news. The N.C. Police have found a space craft that landed in the woods right off of the coast of North Carolina, police say that they have caught fifteen Aliens that were aboard the Space Craft. They claim to be from a planet known as Saruta. These Aliens act and look just like us but can be extremely dangerous! If you see any unusual movement, be sure to call the N.C. Police and inform them of such things.”

  I looked around at everyone. None of them seemed to be suspicious of me. I started to breathe heavily. How are we supposed to live in a place where all they want to do is capture us! I looked at the Television again and saw the Captain of our ship throwing an officer into the side of a building. The look on the Captains face was a look of shock. He didn’t know he had the strength to throw them. His face of shock turned into a face that was fierce. He started to throw the officers one by one. He recognized his power. He looked straight into the camera laughing

  “This is my world now. And no one will stop me.” He then took off jumping from building to building.

  After the breaking news ended everyone returned to their tables I got up and kissed my mother goodbye

  “I’m off to work! I will see you tonight mom!”

  I left the restaurant and headed to the Surf Shop. Cali was already there.

  “Well good morning Astra!” She said joyfully.

  “I heard you and Dillan had quite a night!” She said waiting for my response.

  “Yeah, we just went swimming last night, that’s all. We’re just friends.” I told her.

  “Sure, sure, that’s what everyone says. But you know who always ends up being right in the end?”

  I stared at her waiting for her to answer her own question.

  “Muah!.”

  She said as she pointed both of her thumbs at herself. We both started laughing.

  “So, do you know how to surf?” Cali asked.

  I didn’t know how to surf at all. In fact I didn’t even know what it was until Dillan told me, but it seemed really fun!

  “No, I don’t know how to surf, but it looks fun!” I told her.

  “What! Okay, we are going out surfing this weekend and I’m teaching you how to surf. We can invite Dillan since he is the best surfer in town. It will be a fun gathering. You could meet the rest of the gang that night too during the bon fire!” She exclaimed.

  “Ha ha okay, I will be there.” I said as I started to hang up water suits.

  After work I headed to the restaurant for dinner. Mother ate a burger and fries with me. She was about to get off work. People were still talking about the space craft that landed in the trees near the town and the Captain. I don’t know what is going through his head, but I didn’t really care anymore. I felt like I was starting to fit in. No one had to know where I came from.

  “Ready to go home?” Mom asked.

  “Yes mam!” I responded.

  We left the restaurant and started to walk home. Once we walked into the house I sat on the ground in my mother’s arms. I kept thinking about this morning.

  “Mom, did you see the look on the Captains face. It was really scary, almost like he felt like the most powerful man in the world.”

  She stroked my hair and said

  “I know. We have great strength, strength
that could be used for good or evil. As we use ours for good, good will triumph the evil. We will be okay, I promise.”

  What mother had said made me think that night. I wonder what I really can do. What my powers and my strengths are. That night I decided I would go out the next morning to test my body and see what it could do.

  Who am I?

  I opened my eyes. The sun was shining directly in my face.

  “Well, good morning to you too sun.” I said sarcastically.

  Mom had bought an alarm clock for us to know when to go to work. I looked at it. 4:00 A.M.

  “Mercy..”

  I mumbled.

  I got up and started to put on my blue swim suit. Then I covered it with my coral shorts, a yellow tank top, and my running shoes. I pulled my hair back into a ponytail, grabbed an apple for breakfast and started my morning run. I ran, and ran, and ran. I felt like I was running on air. I came to a stop when I saw a bunch of trees in front of me blocking me from running any further and turned around. I couldn’t see the town or my house anywhere. I had ran forty miles, was in the middle of nowhere and I wasn’t tired at all! I pulled out a small note pad from my back pocket and wrote at the top of the page.

  Strengths

  Speed

  Endurance

  Powers

  Healing

  I looked towards the ocean where I could see a tiny island out in the middle of it. I wonder if I could swim to it. It looked quite far but I decided to try. I took off my tank top, my running shoes, and shorts and set them on a rock nearby, which left me in my blue laced swim suit. I took a few deep breathes while staring at the island then jumped into the water and started to swim towards the island. I tried to get out of the current but the waves were strong.

  The water was covering my entire body leaving me no room to breathe. I was determined to get to that island. I felt the adrenaline fill my body. My arms started to pull and my legs started to kick, I felt stronger and it became easier to move. I was starting to swim faster. I opened my eyes and looked around in the water. I could see fish of all sorts of colors swimming below me, and beautiful coral reefs on the bottom of the ocean. The ocean looked so clear and blue, I loved the ocean. After a while had gone by I realized I was still underwater. I was completely calm and I felt like I didn’t need any air. I continued to swim towards the island.