Thunder grumbled above my head as I raced through the grave-silent woods. My heartbeat echoed through the leaves as a high-pitched cackle reached my ears…

“There’s a storm coming tonight.” I casually mentioned to Zack as we strolled down a forest-like path on our way to university. His fingers folded around mine.

“Don’t worry about the weather, Jace, we’ll be home before it comes down on us.” he reassured me.

Silence fell over us as we walked on.

An unknown clearing opened before us. We must have taken a wrong turn somewhere. Zack pulled my hand back into the direction from which we came, but I pulled away from his grip. The meadow was filled to the brim with daffodils and daisies. Sunlight glistened off the dewdrops on the blades of grass. The scent of peppermint and a fresh water spring drifted into my nose and beckoned me to step deeper into the meadow. The grey cloud that hung over my head earlier seemed to have evaporated. A soft, sweet melody danced through the air and twirled around me. I took a deep breath as I stepped further into the meadow. I turned around to call Zack to join me, but he was gone. A cold breeze hugged my skin as a shiver ran down my spine.

As I turned around the beautiful vision before me morphed into a nightmare. The daffodils and daisies turned into thorny thickets and poison ivy. The peppermint air transformed into a pungent green gas that smelled of molten tar.

I tried to step back, but my feet were frozen in place. The once sweet and soft melody is now the sound of a crow trying to sing.

My feet moved forward hesitantly, but soon they started to run towards the nearest path. Thunder grumbled above my head as I raced through the grave-silent woods. My heartbeat echoed through the leaves as a high-pitched cackle reached my ears. My feet crunched over dead leaves as the path before me grew narrower. Leaves and branches clawed at my face. A shove from the side sent me to my knees as dust flew into my eyes. A solid object banged against the back of my head and allowed the taste of iron to explode in my mouth as a dark paradise surrounded me…

A pounding headache coupled with juvenile giggling forced me to flicker my eyes open. The taste of iron coated my tongue. The giggling stopped. As I managed to sit up, a view of a black lake stretched before me. A rippled appeared in the mirror smooth lake. Fish? No. A pale face slowly emerged from the dark surface. The moonlight reflected off its charcoal eyes. Its ears stretched to a pointy tip and dark crystals were embedded on its cheekbones. Several more faces appeared behind the first. They were all the same, except for their hair. The first being swam towards the edge of the pond. A pair of wings splashed above the water. They looked like angels, but their wings were wrong. Dark and sleek, short and oily. Built for the water. The beings giggled at my mesmerized expression.

“You are afraid, but there is no need for such feeling,” the first being said, “we are the sirens of Blackwood Lake, and we shall not harm you. My name is Alexander, join us.” He stretched out a pale, bony hand towards me.

“Are you the one that sang when I stepped into the meadow?” I asked, frozen in place.

A sly grin revealed a row of pearly shark-teeth. “Yes”

The other sirens opened their mouths and released a soft melody into the air. It twirled around me as my heart pounded in my throat. Slowly, the knots in my stomach started to untwist and my muscles relaxed.

I reached my hand forward towards Alexander as I looked him in the eyes. Enchanted. Mesmerized.

I slipped into the water’s cold embraced and welcomed a dark paradise…