A/N: Hello, there. I'm here with a new story, this time, a collaboration project. The author known as LionKingIsAwesome, J.C. Aldridge and I came together to write a story that would hopefully inspire and entertain you. I believe with these two talented and generally amazing people, we can make a memorable story. We hope you enjoy reading this story, and if you feel that improvements can be made, please inform us in a constructive review. Troll reviews will not be a thing here.

Unkown POV

"Alright, children. No messin' around! Keep up now!"

That was our 'guide', I guess you could call him. It was currently my Senior year of high school, and we were just about done. But before we were, my science class out of them all was one of the first to participate in a new program that schools across the country were becoming a part of.

Basically, the school would bring a whole class to a different country for research and educational purposes. They make it affordable so that the schools are more likely to participate. The catch for them is that we get to stay for a couple weeks they said... So that means more tourism, and it brings them more money.

I don't wanna delve too deep into the specifics of it... It's not like I fucking care anyway... I see school as a waste of my time when I could be doing something more useful with my life instead.

To make matters worse, out of all the major places in the world we could've gone, such as the UK, France, Spain, Australia, Japan, we get Tanzania in Africa, not that I have anything against the country, its just that we got the worse end of the deal, compared to other schools in my opinion.

When we first got here, this guide that we were with, now began giving us the grand tour of his country. He gave us his name, but it was hard to pronounce... I wasn't really paying attention too well anyways.

Oh yeah, I guess you probably want to know who I am.

My name is Andrew King, but I prefer Drew for short. That's what my mother always called me... Unfortunately, my Mom died in a car accident just a month ago... She was the light of my life and the only one who cared for me...

And my father? Don't even get me started on him...

I stand at around 6' 2" tall and weigh about 190 pounds. I have an average build all in all. I wasn't muscular, but I wasn't fat either. I have dirty blonde hair at medium length, fair coloured skin, sky blue eyes, and turned 18 not long ago.

"Alright, children!" The guide said, snapping me out of my inner thoughts. His native African accent was evident with every word he spoke. "Now today, before ya get settled in, you students will get to see a lay of our land!"

All of my classmates and the teacher that got sent with us perked up in awe and looked rather excited. As for me, I was indifferent to it...

I mean, sure, it beats having to do classwork and shit, but I honestly just wanted to lay down and just get away from reality for a while...

"Come on, students, I will show you de way." The guide finished, walking us towards a green grassland in the far distance.

It took quite a bit of walking, and before long, the small town we were previously in shrunk smaller and smaller behind me, the farther we walked.

"Dis here is a baobab tree. Dis towering tree is centuries old, and is a symbol to our-"

I zoned him out as I stood in the very back of the crowd. I looked away from what he was talking about and just looked out further into the savanna.

I wasn't one to appreciate too much, but I had to admit, the land was definitely a beautiful sight to see!

"Da baobab was first found in da year-" I heard just a bit more of what he was saying, only to zone him out again. He was just rambling... This guy could talk, I'll say that...

I widened my eyes slightly upon looking back into the relatively open savanna. In the far distance, I thought I saw... Well, it looked like a cat...

I couldn't tell from this far away... So I dismissed it.

But then, an idea hit me!

'Why not just go check it out myself? This guy will still be rambling on about this tree way before I get back anyway...' I thought to myself.

So without making a sound, I quietly began sneaking away from my class to see just what that was.

The voice of the tour guide grew quieter the further away I went.

'Good,' I thought. Enough of that for a while.

The cat I had seen earlier still appeared to be there. It was laying down beside a tree and looked peaceful where it was at.

I didn't want to disturb it, just look at it.

Out of nowhere, I heard the sound of laughter!

'HAHAHA!' It echoed throughout the grasslands. I honestly couldn't tell where it was coming from.

"Hyena attack! Run!" I thought I heard the guide yell in the far distance. The cat from earlier ran away from the sound of the commotion, leaving my bright idea in the dust.

"Dammit!" I yelled in frustration. However, it was immediately replaced with fear! I had to get back with the group!

As I ran back in the direction of my class, I saw something that shook me to the core. Some of my classmates were being mauled by a large pack of hyenas! So was my teacher!

"Run, children! Run!" The guide yelled out. He turned around and looked in my direction, freezing me in my tracks. I couldn't tell for sure if he saw me or not, but again he yelled out, "RUN!"

This caused me to act on his words and I took off running in the opposite direction. Just before I left the area completely, I could hear the blood-curdling screams of the tour guide, no doubt being killed by the hyenas as well.

I ran and ran until I couldn't any longer! After what felt like hours, exhaustion set in, and I collapsed to the ground.

Darkness took over, my next expectations being death.

Unknown POV

After the penetrating sound of a bang smashed into my eardrums, my eyes leapt open. It was like I had just woke up, sweating and shaking, from the most harrowing nightmare ever, but as my narrow gaze darted around my surroundings, only the facts remained.

My dad was dead.

And I couldn't do anything about it.

I tried my best to tear away from the rope that bent my arms in an almost impossible way. Each small tug cut deeper into my flesh; it wasn't long before I was standing in a puddle of my own blood. All I wanted to do was grab my father and pull him away. Pull him far, far, far away. Away from people, from buildings, from work, from school, from society, even from the universe itself, until only the two of us were left. I could finally talk to him, tell him how much I love him, and just hold him forever. Would he respond? Of course not. He s dead, and I couldn't do anything about it.

The pit in my stomach began to evaporate with a cacophony of emotions, but I didn't cry. No tears were shed as much as the skin on my wrists and the pain in my heart. I felt my forehead heat up as the smoke scrambled from the barrel of the hunting rifle. The trigger almost looked like it was wielded to Shaun s finger, like it was a part of him. I was so close to being able to take the gun, shoving the barrel down his throat and blasting his guts through the air. Then again, dad never liked guns, and he would tell you that any day. I wouldn't want to disappoint him - I respected him - but it wasn't like he would know anyway, because he is dead now. And I couldn't do anything about it.

Soon, my father's blood slowly crept through the crevices on the ground, eventually meeting my pool of blood like a river connecting to the ocean. It was a beautifully horrific sight, which left me feeling nauseous with happiness. I could feel our blood intertwine, like we were meeting again after years and years apart. I could feel his warm arms wrap around my cold, pale body, and taste the salty tears as they dripped from his eyes as he gently whimpered in my ear how much he had missed me.

"But you ve been here all along," I said weakly, confused, while I stared blankly into the distance. His arms gradually unwrapped, and he turned around to walk away. Where are you going! I shouted helplessly. He was already metres away when he turned around and waved goodbye. Farewell. And good luck.

As I blinked, tears finally outlined my eyes, and I saw that I was now alone. My father had reverted to a gory mess, cold and pale, his eyes staring blankly into the distance. Lifeless. It wasn't my father anymore. My father was on vacation somewhere, enjoying a sandy beach and a pint of beer, where the sea washed the worries from his shoulders. Yeah, that's where my father is. I'm certain.

However, I was still bound to a tree, still bleeding, still crying, still hoping that my thoughts would stop, my life would end, and nothing would remain. But Shaun and Connor, those responsible for this act, were running free into the sunset, escaping everything they had done.

I must do something about them. I should, I could, and I will.

And there's nothing they can do about that

Unknown POV

The SUV that carried me was in a convoy that rushed through Dar es Salaam. I had resided here for a few months, having been encouraged by my father to accompany him and my brother on a business trip to Tanzania before we would both leave for our respective university courses. He pitched me the idea of an exciting, exotic holiday, but in reality, it was a boring, corporate affair. My father was an influential property developer, and had secured a contract in Tanzania.

Where are my manners? I am yet to tell my name. I m Alexander Maximilian, or Alex, for short. I am 18 years of age and was eagerly awaiting commencing my university course. As a son of a property developer, whose name was Christian Maximilian, my life has been relatively well-lived. I wouldn t say I was spoiled, but I have known more luxuries than most people could only dream of. However, I have endured tragedy: ten years ago, my mother died of eclampsia before she could give birth to who would have been my sister. Unfortunately, both did not survive, and ever since, my father has raised us as a single father. He would give me and my brother, Lewis, plenty of love and attention, a promise he made to his wife.

Today, however, my family suddenly had to cut short our trip to Tanzania. And even more strange, my father, my brother and myself each went in seperate cars to the Julius Nyerere International Airport. My father went through the the city centre, Lewis went via the western route, and my convoy was taking a more easterly route. However, I was travelling in the same car as my uncle. We were currently silently watching the scenery along our route.

"Why are we all in different convoys?" I asked my uncle, whose name was Thomas.

"Because we are in danger," he said as if it was a casual fact.

"What?"

"You know how your father was contracted to build homes here? They were built on order for wealthy, foreign investors in the Stock Market, and before the homes were built, there was a large slum, and despite numerous objections to the plans, the corrupt government simply ignored the will of the people. However, your father was told that it was previously a landfill site instead of a slum filled with impoverished people. There were some unsavoury folk who found out who was responsible for the construction of the houses, and they decided to antagonise your father," he explained.

"The man who robbed our home here, do you think he was involved in this?" I asked.

"Most likely. We ve had to take different paths to keep all of you safe. If we were all in the same convoy, we would all be in the most dangerous situation, he replied. We are being escorted by the police to the airport, for they have intelligence that we are being targeted."

As the car drove along a road between a suburban neighbourhood and the vast, blue ocean, the convoy was coming upon what appeared to be a broken down estate car, with its hood raised. A man waved at the convoy in an attempt to halt it. All the cars of the convoy passed, save for the last one. The second car behind us in our convoy pulled over to assist the man with his car. However, when a dull bang was heard, my uncle and I looked behind to see what was the source of the sound, we both saw the man pointing an AK-47 at the vehicle, spraying bullets at it.

Oh, shit! Faster! my uncle ordered the driver, and seeing our car accelerate, the other drivers knew the plan in the event of an emergency. A car turned into the next two junctions as we turned into a third. My body was suddenly possessed with fear. My heart began to race as panic settled in my mind.

"It's going to be alright, Alex," my uncle attempted to calm me down, hugging me tightly. This did not completely extinguish the fear in my heart. My stomach was disturbed by the SUV suddenly veering left, avoiding an apparent roadblock. However, as we continued down the road we were forced to take, we saw a hooded figure standing in the middle of the road. Their details were vague at this point, but we could see that they were holding a Glock pistol in their right hand and a small device in their left. They raised their gun-wielding hand, pulled the trigger, and a bullet flew through the window and into the skull of the driver.

"Jesus, fuck!" Get down my uncle yelled. We both ducked, hoping that no more bullets would fly towards us. However, almost immediately afterwards, there was an enormous noise coming from below us, and I felt in my stomach that the car flipped, as I had my eyes clenched closed.

The noise of the roof grazing on the tarmac tortured my ears. I felt blood come from my nose and pain in my shoulder. I looked to where my uncle was, and his eyes were closed. I shook him with my hand that wasn't burdened with hurt.

"Thomas!" I shouted. I heard the person who shot the driver walk towards the car. I unclipped mine and my uncle s seat belts, hoping to escape before the person could kill us. However, the door opened before I could grip the door handle, and I received a punch to the face that robbed me of my consciousness.

A/N: Three people, one destiny? Oh, my God, that sounded awful. Anyway, if you liked (or didn't like) this story, please let us know why. Again, this was written by LionKingIsAwesome, J.C. Aldridge and me. Each of us wrote one part in that order. The next chapter will be written soon. That which is rushed will always be unsatisfactory, please remember that.