Chapter 5
Under the Night Sky
“The whole world is scared, so I’ll just swallow its fear…”
~P!nk~
Exsavior sighed, relishing in the cool air that brushed his face as he lay on his back on the moist grass. He was shirtless and alone in some unknown park that was not too far from Lily’s house. He did not know whether or not they were looking for him, and he did not care. All he did know was that he was supposed to be looking for Isabel, but not even that was something he cared to do at the moment.
‘What am I supposed to do father?’ He thought, as he stared at the beautiful stars in awe. He remembered all the constellations his kin would marvel at.
The light formations revealed the truth of his ancestry. The victory of Odin—riding the wolf over the night sky to devour the sun in aim to raise the power of the moon—was his favorite.
‘I dream to ride the sky and run with the moon…’ It was what he used to say to his mother, every time they would sit back to watch them together. Lifting his arm, he imagined the form of a small wolf made of stars following the path of his finger, as he played chase with them.
“An uncatchable dream…” He said in a sigh as he dropped his hand.
“What is?” In an instant, a feminine voice caught his attention. It flooded his nostrils almost like a wave of sedatives—the scent of moonflowers.
He looked up curiously, lifting himself up. His eyes met her green depths and he lost himself in them. She was beautiful under the glow of the night as if the source of its radiance. Her silky brown hair cascaded freely on her back with the wind shaking it every now and then, making her scent fly into the air.
“Oh um…it’s nothing I was just…” He stammered with his words, feeling exposed without his shirt. Scrambling to put it on, Mia just kicked the piece of clothing towards him, while completing his thought.
“You were just talking to yourself.” She said playfully, narrowing her eyes at him.
Exsavior almost turned red from the embarrassment, but he calmed himself when he put on his shirt. Mia sat down next to him, as she put her backpack down. She was still in her school uniform, and Exsavior could not help but eye her in curiosity. She did not look at him; her stare graced the flickering stars instead of his own orbs.
“Your name’s Exsavior, right?” She finally spoke without looking at him.
“Yes and your name is Mia.” He stated firmly.
This time, she looked at him with a suspicious smile. “How do you do that?”
Confused, he spoke. “Do what?”
“You know…you talk as if you’re trying to get everyone to fall in love with you.” She said, as she broke her gaze to look back at the sky. Her smile only grew in size, anticipating his self-consciousness.
Mia was never one to ignore details. If there was something she noticed she would not hesitate to ask about it, even if it caused discomfiture. She was just very upfront that way.
Exsavior blinked at her amusement, despite Mia’s joy. “I don’t know what you’re talking about? This is my normal voice.” He said with laughter.
Mia just snickered as she stared at him from the corner of her eye. “I’m sure.”
“So, what are you doing out so late by yourself?” He asked.
“I could ask you the same thing.” She countered.
“Ah, but it would be moot since I am a man and you’re a lady.” He said.
Mia turned back to look at him and scowled. “Your assuming just because I’m female I can’t take care of myself.” She said, starting to get annoyed.
“No, I am only implying that beautiful girls should not be alone every so often. There are many ill-mannered people.” He said, not noticing her slight irritation.
Mia was taken aback by his answer. She was half expecting a chauvinistic response or a stammer-like mumble to retract his comment, but never did she expect such a compliment. She looked at him, and for the first time, she really looked at him.
His dark black hair, dangling over his eyes, was like a perfect mess of raven thick locks, and his brown irises reflected something intense—something mysterious and wild. It taunted her like the eyes of a wild animal, daring anyone to try and tame it. Not to mention, his body was lean but his muscles expressed his familiarity with physical exercise.
Mia felt her face flush as she stared at this stranger, and Exsavior—seeing her red cheeks—lifted his hand in curiosity to gently rub it with his thumb, never breaking his gaze.
“…What…are you doing…?” She asked, trembling under his soft touch.
“Your cheeks, they’ve turned red and warm.” He said softly.
Mia almost had to fight against her own will when she tried to break away from him. She then quickly looked down at the grass in anger with herself because of her behavior.
“Yeah, they do that sometimes.” She said weakly. Exsavior just nodded unsure of what to say to that.
“So, you still haven’t told me what you’re doing here.” She said almost forcefully, while trying to deviate from the current subject.
Exsavior just grinned boyishly and Mia eased up a bit. “I don’t think you’ve told me either, but no matter, I’ll tell you.” He said happily, as if preparing himself for some sort of enjoyment that was to come.
“I left the house because Lily brought some social worker to interrogate me.” He said in a scoff. “So, I came here when it turned dark just to look at the stars. I’ve always loved to stare up at the brilliant sky. To me, there’s nothing more beautiful that could make me feel so at peace.” He said sincerely, as he looked up at them again.
Mia wanted to laugh, but something stopped her. She saw just how genuine he was being. He was actually telling her the truth, something that the people in her life seemed to lack.
“Wow…” She said unconsciously.
He turned to look at her in wonder. “What?”
“I guess I’m just shocked that you actually meant what you said.”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
Mia giggled at the question, recalling how shallow minded and immature all the boys in her class were. “It’s just that not many people appreciate the stars like you do.” She said.
Exsavior frowned a bit. “I guess I love it so much because my mother loved them.” He said earnestly again.
Mia instantly became curious. “I’m guessing she’s not with you anymore.” She said quietly.
He just nodded and spoke. “She used to marvel at the constellations of Lupus and Sirius. The Wolf and The Dog, and I guess those are my two favorites.”
Mia remained silent for a moment before she turned to stare back at the sky. After a moment of thought, she decided to speak. “I don’t have any nice memories like that of my parents. My mother left when I was six, and my father passed away when I was ten.”
“You don’t have any tender moments of your father?”
Exsavior started to feel her pain—her sorrow started to stealthily seep into his own heart. He had almost not realized that it was happening. The empathic connection, which he had not felt in so long, had returned. It was something that usually occurred with someone of his own kin, but never with a human. An empathic connection was never made with a human, and somehow it was paralyzing, unlike with his kin. It had been fifty long years since the last time he had empathy with anyone, and it took everything that he was to not burst into tears.
“I don’t really have that much to tell about my dad just that he left me this.” She said sadly as she pulled out a beautiful gold pendant.
It had a small gold medallion in the shape of a symbolic ‘A’.
“I don’t know what it means, and I’ve asked around, but no one seems to understand what the ‘A’ stands for.” She said solemnly.
Exsavior touched the pendant in awe, and somehow, he perceived some sort of feeling from it, as if it was the remnants of Mia’s father.
“…Hope…” He said simply.
Mia just stared at him as the tears began to stream down her face. “I know. He gave it to me so that I would have something to hope for…that someday I’ll see him again. That’s what I’ve always felt and what I truly believe.”
Exsavior was about to argue, but he refrained from doing so, when he realized that there was no way he could explain his perception. It was not some hopeful assumption humans formulated to console themselves—it was more of a certainty. The pendant she wore gave off a lingering emotion, as if it was her father’s last wish.
But he could not tell her, no matter how he wanted. That would cause too many unwanted questions, given that she would actually believe him.
‘Why…why do I want to?’ He thought to himself. How did he get to feel so strongly? He felt her grief, her sorrow and how alone she was, and something within him was urging to do something about it.
‘This empathy…why now…why with her…?’ Time suddenly seemed to slow down as his eyes locked with hers. She was talking, expressing her sorrow and every small detail—from the quiver of her lips to the slight movements of her eyes—seemed to intensify under his gaze.
The shimmering of her green eyes—adorned with glistening jewels of tears—and her brown hair that flowed beautifully, captivated him with an underlying emotion of love.
‘Love…?’ He did not want it, but then again, since when did humans or beings like him have control over such feelings?
“I’m probably boring you,” and then it stopped. She somehow had gotten a hold of herself, which pacified his feelings.
Exsavior fumbled a bit with his words, but once his head cleared, he spoke. “Oh, no of course not, men are supposed to listen intently when a woman is in need.” He said chivalrously.
Mia smiled confoundedly at him. “Are you for real?”
Exsavior did not understand the joke. He just looked at her funny. “Why would you ask that? Do you not see me here?”
‘It’s like he’s not even seventeen.’ She thought. Mia laughed at his questions.
“You know, talking to you is kind of a relief.” She said, taking her stare off of him.
Exsavior gave her a blank look after not receiving his answer to his previous questions. “Why is that?” He was so confused.
“Some stuff about my life has not been particularly easy to handle or to escape from. You’re like my refuge, where nothing matters and my problems don’t exist.” She said genuinely, as a tiny smile made its way to her face. It was the most honest facial expression she could muster, and it would always come to her naturally.
Exsavior smiled vibrantly at her, “I’m glad.”
“Oh, I just hate to interrupt you young lovebirds, but this is too important to pass up.”
Both Exsavior and Mia were about to turn to address the foreign voice, but it never happened.
There was a grunt. A rapid gust of wind whisked past him in a flashing whirl.
Mia’s body disappeared into the depths of the pond. Her body was flung hard in a single mind-numbing swoosh that her limbs were rendered powerless; they shook painfully in an uncontrollable manner under the pressure. It was instantaneous, preventing Exsavior from comprehending what had happened. One minute she was there, and the next she whirled away from him, as the water consumed her body like a discarded object.
“Mia!” Exsavior yelled, but when he stood and turned to face his opponent, he only saw a fragile decrepit man, holding a walking stick.
“Who are you?” and for the first time, Exsavior felt it, a distrustful presence that reeked of hostility.
“So sorry for that, but I needed to talk to you alone.” Those words were followed by his cane. The old man gently lifted it and pointed towards Exsavior; soon after, the wind was knocked out of him.
Exsavior’s body flew so hard that it disappeared into the mayhem of trees—opposite from where Mia had flown. His abdomen, where the cane had almost made contact, burned intensely, as if touched by something extremely hot.
Before he could even assimilate what had happened, Exsavior’s eyes turned a glowing red as his canines grew into fangs. His rage was getting the better of him, but when he looked up, there was the man floating over him.
“Oh come now, do you really think you’re going to make a difference by becoming a dog?” He snidely questioned.
The statement fueled his rage, for the only word that Exsavior acknowledged was ‘dog.’
In a loud grunt, he lunged himself towards the old man with his clawed enlarged hands. It did not take long for his anger to make him grow his raven blue fur as his human form vanished.
‘Who do you think you are?!’
The old man easily dodged his brusque attacks, swiftly moving through the air with his walking stick in hand.
He scoffed. “I am more than what you will ever be—both human and in immortality. I am the perfect being.” He said simply.
‘Then I shall deliver a perfect death!’ with that said, Exsavior roared through the air in the direction of the man. His mouth was enormous almost the same size as the old man, and his teeth would have made anything or anyone cower in fear.
The power of the roar was ruthless, making an invisible wave of energy crystallize the air. It created shards of ice, and they flew in the direction of the old antagonist, as if the wind of a blizzard.
Nevertheless, the man just remained still—even when he was directly hit by the piercing cold wind. The icy particles shattered on his skin as if they were nothing but snowflakes.
“Humph…such archaic capabilities…” He said spitefully.
When Exsavior closed his jaws, he instantly caught glimpse of the man’s skin. It was not the same old droopy like coating; instead, it was glistening in resemblance to the icy air he emitted from his mouth.
‘What is this magic?’ Exsavior had never seen anything similar to it.
His mind frantically sought an explanation. His skin must have taken in the elemental structure of the ice, and that’s when it came to him.
‘Adaptability…’
“Oh, you catch on quick.” The man said in sarcasm.
If Exsavior would have been in his human form the smirk his mind played over would have been very visible. Due to this, he charged defiantly towards the floating old man, and once again, he did nothing.
Opening his mouth while tilting his head slightly, Exsavior captured his weak like body under his powerful jaws, but nothing happened. Instead of an agonizing scream or the spill of blood, Exsavior’s teeth clashed with something solid and cold.
He could not break it…
‘What is this? There’s nothing I cannot pierce!’
“You sad little pup…” This time, the man’s voice came with a slight edge of annoyance. With ease, he lifted his cane once more and slapped him away, like some bothersome fly, with another burning hit.
Exsavior whimpered in pain as the hit started to draw blood. His body ungracefully flew and gave out when it crashed on the hard ground. This time, he remained vigilant and still, waiting to see what his antagonist would do.
“Well, now that I have your full attention. My name is Ezekias Halder, and I have come here to give you a chance.” The flying old man paused for a moment, his old brown eyes narrowing in an ominous glare. “I felt your presence the moment you entered the city.” He said lowly, tipping off Exsavior that he was being watched. “I’d like you to fight alongside me; if not, you will die like any other human on the next Black Night.” He said, making it obvious that it was more of an ultimatum than an opportunity.
‘You expect me to slaughter humans senselessly?’ Exsavior said, rhetorically.
“I can’t understand why you wolves, such beastly animalistic beings, would refrain themselves from doing just watch nature built them to do.” He said in false bewilderment.
‘We don’t kill to survive, and for the sake of my kin and all the lycans out there, I won’t let this night happen again even if it kills me.’ Exsavior stated defiantly.
“Then you will die. Simple as that just like the rest who choose to oppose me and you will resolve nothing because it will happen.” He paused before lightening up a bit. “Well, I guess we’re done here. Don’t say I did not warn you.” Before he took his leave, he lifted his cane and directed it towards Exsavior.
“Give your witch friend my regards for her excellent spell.” It was the last phrase Exsavior heard before the blazing light blinded him. It shot out from Ezekias’s cane like a bullet, soaring towards its target to crash with one of Exsavior’s hind legs.
The old man smirked evilly at his victim’s pain, as he vanished from thin air, leaving nothing but a strong piercing cry that resonated throughout the forest. The burning strike drew out more blood as it easily pierced through Exsavior’s skin. It ravaged his flesh and burned the tissue, while the red liquid poured out of his body uncontrollably. The pain was so unbearable that Exsavior instantly morphed back into his human form. He tried to lift his naked body from the ground but he limped in pain. His mind screamed, telling him to get out of the forest before someone saw him.
“Exsavior!” The sound of Mia’s voice was the indicator that reinforced his retreat.
‘I have…to get out of here…’ He thought, woozily. Somehow, the blows he took consumed his energy.
‘That power—what did it do to me?’ He thought in angst as Mia’s voice started to draw closer.
In a flash, he used the last shred of energy he had and ran in an inhuman speed. Exsavior crashed into trees every now and then, but he never once stopped as he pushed against the searing pain.
‘I have to find her scent.’ He thought in desperation.
It did not take Exsavior long to find his way into the suburbs, as he ran completely nude in the middle of the night. Fortunately for him, anyone who would have been out that late would have never seen anything but the whisk of a strong wind.
He could not push any longer and his senses were starting to give out, but he knew he was somewhere close to Isabel’s house. In a desperate attempt, he threw himself into a nearby bush and hid. After which, he prepared his lungs and fired out a piercing howl—hoping that she would hear it and come for him.
The howl resonated throughout the neighborhood like some eerie echo. Many residents peered out their windows to see if they could catch the source of the cry, but others just shrugged it off as some love sick dog. Fortunately for Exsavior, this was not the case for Isabel, who had opened her window to look outside like all the other curious people.
“That was no dog howl.” She thought in wonder and suspicion.
Quickly and determinedly, she put on a shirt and jacket as she prepared herself to venture outside. Something seemed off to her and she was going to find out what…