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𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟏
𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐁𝐑𝐀𝐕𝐄 𝐋𝐈𝐅𝐄𝐆𝐔𝐀𝐑𝐃

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A loud beeping filled the air, causing the blonde girl to reach out from under the covers and slam her hand down on her alarm clock. After letting out a muffled irritated groan, she threw her blanket off of her and began her morning routine. Once she was dressed for work, she grabbed her sunglasses and made her way through the empty house toward the kitchen to make breakfast. As she waited for her toast to pop out of the toaster, she packed up her lunch and everything she needed for the day into her bag. She then sat at the counter to wait for the toaster to finish doing its job.

Lauren Taylor had been on her own since her parents decided to travel the world with her older brother, Lance, after he graduated from Harvard University. But the Taylor girl decided to pass on going on the adventure with her family to finish school and start her life. Lauren only had two more years of college to complete before she got her degree in elementary education. Most would be disappointed about missing traveling the world with their loved ones, but she wasn't. Especially since her brother promised to take her on a trip during one of her breaks in the future.

After she finished her breakfast, the blonde girl slipped on her shoes and grabbed her keys before leaving her empty house. Lauren hummed to herself as she made her way down the driveway toward her Jeep. She jumped into her car and started the engine, causing music to take over the silence surrounding her. A large smile spread across her lips as she began her drive to the beach where she would start her lifeguard shift.

Only fifteen minutes went by before she arrived at her destination. Lauren quickly locked up her car and made her way to the lifeguard hut to clock in for the day. She greeted her co-workers with a smile as she applied a thick layer of sunscreen. It wasn't long after that when she grabbed her sunglasses and walked out of the hut. The three of them walked along the sand, taking in the beautiful day while looking over how many people were at the beach. To their surprise, there weren't many beachgoers that day. Once they finished making their rounds, Ryker and Hunter went to check up on their jet ski and supplies while Lauren went to the lifeguard tower. She climbed up the ladder before sitting down in the chair and looking around at the world around her.

Hours passed as Lauren enjoyed the peaceful, cloudless day at the practically empty beach. This was the first time in a while that she didn't really have much to do during her shift. That was until her lunch break came. It was right after the Taylor girl switched with Hunter when a blood-chilling scream cut through the air. Lauren grabbed her binoculars without an ounce of hesitation and brought them up to her eyes to get a better view of what was happening. Her entire body tensed when she saw a young boy having trouble swimming against the waves. Her instincts kicked in before her brain could fully comprehend the situation. Lauren soon found herself sprinting toward their jet ski with Ryker right behind her. She quickly jumped onto the board attached to the back of the jet ski while the Zerrin boy hopped onto it. Not even a second after that passed when they began speeding toward the screaming boy. All they could do was hope that they would make it in time.

Despite the odds being against them, the lifeguard duo reached the boy faster than they expected. Lauren didn't hesitate to jump off the board and grab the boy right before he went underwater again. It wasn't long after that when she pushed him onto the board to safety. But right as the Taylor girl thought they were in the clear, the water around them grew still. Confusion flowed through her veins, only for it to turn to terror after turning around to find a giant wave coming straight for them.

"Ryker! Get him on with you! Quick!" Lauren shouted, causing him to look over his shoulder at her.

His eyes soon grew to the size of planets at the sight of the huge wave approaching them. They rushed to get the boy on the jet ski before the Taylor girl grabbed onto the board. That was all they managed to do before the wave hit. Lauren was instantly pulled underwater as panic flowed through her veins. She did her best to fight against the strong current, only to fail miserably. Everything was happening so quickly. Lauren was pulled further and further down toward the ocean floor until her head slammed against a rock. Pain replaced every emotion she was feeling while she continued to get thrown around by the strong current. The Taylor girl did her best to stay awake, but she still went in and out of consciousness.

That continued for what felt like an eternity before Lauren was met with a blinding light. Her eyes instantly shut to block it out. A long moment passed of the blonde girl floating around in the ocean before the bright light finally vanished. She slowly opened her eyes, only for shock to course through her veins by what she saw. Everything around her was so clear. And on top of that, she could breathe. It was as if she wasn't underwater in the first place, which was impossible.

It took a while for Lauren to shake off the shock she was feeling before swimming to the surface. She instantly took a huge breath of air that she didn't really need the second the sun hit her face. Lauren only needed a moment to gather her bearings before taking off toward the beach. She found herself crawling onto the sandy shore before lying down on her back. The Taylor girl closed her eyes and let the sun's heat warm her. She was surprised at how uncomfortable it made her feel, especially since she was used to the warm weather. But before she had a chance to comprehend her thoughts, she heard someone shouting her name. A shadow soon appeared over her, causing her to open her eyes to find Ryker and Hunter staring down at her.

The two boys just stared at her for a long moment before helping her to her feet. Lauren coughed up a little water as they escorted her toward the lifeguard hut. What surprised her the most about the entire situation was how good she felt. If she were being honest, she felt better than ever.

"Are you okay?" Hunter asked after walking into the hut and forcing Lauren to sit down on the couch.

"I'm fine," the Taylor girl whispered just loud enough for them to hear.

"Well, I don't care how good you feel. You're still taking a break and there's no getting out of it," Ryker told Lauren, not bothering to hide the nervous shaking of his voice, "if we see you anywhere but here, you're going home."

"Okay, I get it. I'll stay here for a while," Lauren told them before a small smile appeared on her lips, "thanks, guys."

They didn't hesitate to return her gesture before making their way out of the hut. But what they didn't realize was that Lauren caught the skeptical look they shared. As soon as the door closed behind them, the Taylor girl slumped on the couch and closed her eyes. She wanted to forget everything that happened and pretend it was all a bad dream. Just as she was beginning to settle down, she heard someone walking toward the hut. It wasn't long before the door swung open, causing Lauren to let out a quiet sigh. Her eyes slowly opened to see who was coming to see her, only for her body to freeze when she found an unfamiliar woman standing in front of her.

"Lauren Taylor?" the woman asked with a blank look on her face, causing goosebumps to form on the blonde girl's arms.

"Uh, yeah. That would be me," Lauren said. The two of them just stood in silence for a long moment before the Taylor girl snapped out of her daze. "Um, you really shouldn't be in here. But is there something I can help you with?"

"My name is Umi Zerrin. I am the Seer and Protector of the Chosen Ones. I have come to inform you that the Water Spirit has chosen you," the blonde woman explained, earning a very confused look from the girl sitting in front of her.

Lauren couldn't help but stare at her while trying to decide if Umi was messing with her or just plain crazy. She let the silence surround them for a moment longer before responding. "I don't mean to sound rude but did you get too much sun? Or maybe hit your head on something?"

The two of them stared at each other for a long, silent moment before Umi came closer to the blonde girl on the couch. Before Lauren could react, the white-haired woman placed her hands on Lauren's temples, causing a bright light to appear out of nowhere and temporarily blind the lifeguard.

When the bright light vanished, Lauren found herself standing alongside four other people she had never seen before. Across from them stood a raven-haired man with the brightest blue eyes she had ever seen. But what really caught her attention was what seemed to be an army of shadows behind him. The Taylor girl's body moved without her telling it to before a stream of water shot out of her palms and toward the shadowy figure coming at her. The water transformed in front of her very eyes into what looked like a rope. Not even a second after that passed when she used it as a whip against the approaching shadows. What felt like an eternity passed of watching herself do the impossible when the familiar bright light reappeared, blinding Lauren once again.

It wasn't long before Lauren's vision cleared, revealing Umi standing in front of her with a small smile on her face. The Taylor girl did her best to comprehend what just happened to her, only to fail to come up with any logical reason for what she just saw. The grin on the Zerrin woman's face did nothing but grow as the girl in front of her shook her head and rubbed her hands over her face. Lauren felt as though she was going crazy, or at least feeling the aftermath of hitting her head. Because there was no way this was happening. It wasn't possible.

As if sensing her uncertainty, Umi grabbed a cup of water from the table before throwing the contents at Lauren. The young girl instinctively held her hands in front of her face to try and block as much of the water as possible. She waited for the water to hit her, but it never came. Confusion returned to the Taylor girl's veins as she slowly took her hands away from her face. Her jaw instantly dropped when she saw a small ball of water floating in the air inches away from her face.

"Do you believe me now?" Umi questioned, pulling Lauren's attention away from the ball of water. To the latter's surprise, that caused it to splash onto the floor.

The Taylor girl just stared at the puddle with water for a moment before looking back up at the Seer. "If I'm being honest with you, I'm still trying to figure out what's actually going on. I don't want to believe anything you say, but I kinda have to believe you after seeing that. There's no other explanation for me being able to do that."

The smile instantly returned to the Zerrin woman's face. "Good. Now come with me. We have work to do."

"Hold on," Lauren said, causing Umi to stop in her tracks and turn around to face her, "look, I said that I believed you but I never said that I trusted you. You're just some random person who appeared out of nowhere and knocked me out."

"Did you see that man in the vision I showed you? The one with an army of shadows?" Umi questioned with a hint of irritation in her voice. After receiving a nod in response from the Taylor girl, she continued speaking. "His name is Adrien. He's been known by some as the Dark King. But most simply call him Darkness. He can control shadows just like you can control water. He's been trying to snuff out the light for all of eternity. He almost succeeded a thousand years ago."

"Okay. I get it. He's a bad guy that roamed the earth thousands of years ago," Lauren replied with a hint of skepticism in her eyes before letting out a long sigh, "but what does this Adrien person have to do with the world right now?"

"Something is going to happen in the next few years that will cause him to break out of his prison. Unfortunately for us, I have no idea what it is. Adrien will rise again and attempt to finish what he started all those years ago," the Zerrin woman declared, causing all the emotion to fade from Lauren's face, "the only ones that can stop him are you and the other Chosen Ones. If you don't come with me, you will give him a better chance of accomplishing his goal."

The Taylor girl just stared at Umi for a long moment while taking in all the information just given to her. It wasn't long after that when she let out another long sigh and got to her feet. She walked toward the Zerrin woman before stopping a few feet away from her. "Look, the only reason I'm agreeing to this is because I can't think of any logical reason for anything that just happened. But if I even think that you're trying to play me, I won't hesitate to call the police."

The smile returned to Umi's face before the two of them walked out of the hut. The Zerrin woman stayed back while Lauren went to talk to Ryker and Hunter. She told them that she needed to take the rest of the day off and they gladly agreed. What no one noticed was the proud look in Umi's eyes as she watched the three of them. But she wasn't looking at Lauren. Her eyes were on Ryker. It wasn't long before the Taylor girl got all of her stuff and followed Umi away from the beach. As soon as they got into her Jeep, she began driving away from the beach and toward wherever Umi was telling her to go.

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The two drove through town with nothing but Umi's directions to break the silence. It wasn't long before Lauren pulled the car up to a strange-looking mountain just outside of town. The Taylor girl opened her mouth to speak, only for it to slam shut when she saw Umi press a button on her watch. Not even a second after that passed when a door opened at the base of the mountain. After sending the blonde woman another skeptical look, Lauren drove inside and parked her Jeep in what seemed to be a large garage.

Not even a second after Lauren turned off the engine passed when the Zerrin woman jumped out of the car and gestured for her to follow. The Taylor girl waited for a moment before hesitantly getting out of the car. Umi led the young girl through a long hallway until they reached a huge living space in what appeared to be the center of the mountain. After a few confused glances from Lauren, Umi walked over to one of the walls and touched a rock. A door soon opened out of nowhere before the blonde woman walked inside, followed by a very stunned Lauren.

"You will be the leader of the Chosen. That's why the Water Spirit selected you first," Umi explained as they continued walking down another hall, "the other Spirits will wait to choose their hero once you finish your training and are close to mastering your abilities. Your job will be to help them master their powers."

Lauren couldn't help but scoff, earning a confused look from the Zerrin woman. "I'm sorry, but me? A leader? Look, I'm great at working with other people, but I'm not a leader. At most, maybe second-in-command."

"The Water Spirit is always the one to select the leader of the Chosen Ones and always will be. She chooses her heroes and she picked you. I am simply here to guide you."

"Why did she pick me though?" the Taylor girl questioned despite hearing the finality in Umi's voice, "I'm just some college student who works as a lifeguard on the weekends."

The Zerrin woman chuckled before responding to the young girl in front of her. "There's something special about you, Lauren. Something that most people don't have within them. Even I can see it. You just have to learn to see it in yourself."

Before the blonde girl had a chance to respond, Umi turned around to open a large wooden door. A small hallway filled with six different colored doors was soon revealed, which the Zerrin woman said were the bedrooms of the Chosen for when they stayed there. She then closed the door and continued walking down the main hallway. It wasn't long before they came to a room that contained computers and keyboards, which was their control room. After spending a few minutes there, they continued walking through the corridor until arriving at the training room. Lauren watched as Umi pressed a blue button on the wall closest to them. Not even a second after that passed when a small pool of water appeared in the center of the room.

Umi couldn't help but smirk at the awe in Lauren's eyes before breaking the silence surrounding them. "Do you still think you need to call the police?"

"Honestly, I'm still trying to decide if this is real or if I'm still at the bottom of the ocean," Lauren admitted before looking over at the woman standing next to her, "either way, I'm not ruling out calling the police until I know for sure that you're not trying to kidnap me."

"Very well," the white-haired woman said after letting out a small laugh. It wasn't long before her eyes fell back on the pool of water. "This is where you're going to train. Since you have the rest of the day off, you could start now. You need to get control of your abilities before we find the rest of the Chosen. The sooner you begin your training the better."

Lauren surprised herself after she nodded in understanding. She was even more surprised when she found herself walking toward the pool without an ounce of hesitation. The Taylor girl looked down into the clear water before letting a small breath escape her. She soon held her hand straight over the water, causing a stream to come up and meet the palm of her hand. Her instincts took over as Lauren pulled her hand back. Shock coursed through her veins as she watched the water splash back into the pool. As she watched ripples flow through the small body of water, all Lauren could think about was how she got herself into her current situation.

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