Thump. Thump. Thump.
The sound of Laila's fists hitting the leather-wrapped punching bag sounded throughout the empty dojo. The clanging of the interlocked metal links followed as the bag swung back.
Thump. Thump.
It'd been a minute since she'd last stepped foot in here, but for some reason, she'd woken up irritated as hell. The tiefling girl had rolled out of bed, forced her tangled hair into a messy bun up behind her horns, and drug her duffel bag through the private corridors of the palace hall until she reached the room. She'd slammed it behind her, locked the door, and immediately gone at it.
Upper cut. Jab. Lead hook. Kick. Cross. Laila pulled on her Matukai training, applying every ounce of her strength into her punches and kicks until the bag finally had enough. It broke from its chains as the leather ripped away from the metal, then hit the cushioned floor with a solid thud. Laila, her chest rising and falling heavily, stared down at it with glitter on her eyelids from the night before and blood on her knuckles from the ceaseless impacts.
When her breathing slowed, she straightened her back and turned to grab another bag when something froze her in place. Dread, from the tip of her toes to the point of her horns, ran like a shockwave through her body. It almost took her breath away, and it certainly forced her tired body to drop down onto her knees. It felt like the Force, but it had come over her in such a foreign way that she wasn't even exactly sure if it was the same Force she was so used to augmenting her kicks and punches.
Something warm pooling on her lip pulled her out of her dazed state, and she wiped her face with the side of her hand. Blood stained the side of her hand from a nosebleed, and she grimaced in response. The feeling of dread has subsided, but it left her feeling uneasy.
Laila stood back up and made her way back over to the duffel bag she'd tossed aside and fished out her NalPhone. After aggressively wiping the blood on her fingers off on her pants, she typed out a quick message to the family group chat:
I just got the worst feeling... (@Sreeya @Altaris @Versok @llamallove @SlagathorTheUnknown @Wit @Scoobert @LouJoVi)
Already, she was getting notifications on Switter, Galaxygram, TokTik, and other social platforms about a few others feeling the same feeling. Scarlet eyes scrolled down the illuminated screen, growing wider as she read through comment threads in real-time. What in the world?
No longer feeling up to punching bags, Laila grabbed her duffel bag and drug it back out of the room, immediately going to seek out her family. Ma, Pa, Tai, Mira... it didn't matter. She wasn't sure what that feeling was, but it scared her.
