"What's happening to her?"
"I don't know!"
"How can you not know? You're a doctor aren't you?!"
Chittip examined Lisa's body whilst the trio behind her bickered like children. In her eyes, she saw how Lisa's heart pumped at such an alarming rate as much as how blood circulated in every vein she had in her body. With worried yet curious eyes, she stared at her daughter, who perspired extremely as her sweat already created a small pool around her.
Eyes forced closed. Fists in a ball. Lisa's body convulsed from the immense heat her body felt; it was as though her body was about to turn inside out. Her mind had gone blank a long time ago and only the pain of her body coursed through her thoughts.
"Look at her!" Marco nearly growled as he pointed Lisa to Mina, who ran out of things to say due to the unusual circumstance. "You can't even see her irises!"
"That's because her eyes are moving at such a fast speed that you can't see them anymore," Mina tried to explain as Rosé nearly ran out of patience with him; she has had enough of Marco raising his voice at Mina.
"Uncle, please," Rosé spoke as she stood in between them, "Stop shouting at Mina, we've all been through a lot already."
Marco took a step back and looked at them; he looked away in shame after he realised that Rosé was right. They had a rough night and they needed to get back home; he sighed and looked at Mina with a sad look in his eyes as though he wanted to apologize, but felt too ashamed to do so.
Looking away, Marco turned about and left the room; he did not wish to face them at his current state – prone to much anger. Rosé turned to Mina and offered a warm smile to her; on the brink of tears, Mina hugged Rosé instantly to prevent the tears from falling. She did not wish to add more complications to what they had; her ignorance was not something she was proud of.
Just when everything was starting calm down, Lisa growled out loud as her body shook fervently as she tried to unbind herself from the restraints she was in. Chittip tried to keep her down by the shoulders as much as Rosé came over as quickly as she could to hold down Lisa's legs.
"What's going on?" Marco busted through the door and looked Lisa. "What's happening now?"
"I'm not sure," Chittip responded as she kept Lisa's hands away from the restraints, "She suddenly went into a fit after she roared."
"We need to get her to the pack," Marco suggested as he helped tighten the make-shift restraints, "None of us know what's going on."
"But we're countries apart," Chittip replied as she bound Lisa's wrist over her head, "It will take us a few days to get back," she continued as Lisa roared as saliva burst out her mouth, "I don't think father will pursue us, but still."
Aware of the situation, Marco stood up and nodded; he leapt out of the broken window of the abandoned house they were in. He needed to find a car for them to use so they can return home; he knew not what happened to Lisa – even Mina was clueless to what went on.
Once Lisa was properly restrained, Rosé looked at Mina, who looked like she was in deep thought as her eyes examined Lisa carefully. She approached her and wondered what went on in her wonderful mind that she wished she could see its contents; her knowledge would be useful for her.
Frustrated, Mina yelled and ruffled her hair as though she wanted to flip her brain for an answer. Rosé just smiled at her as waited for an explanation; even she had her own theories to what truly happened. It made her wonder where Jennie was since she was not with Lisa when they found her.
There were no traces of a fight around Lisa - not even footsteps were visible. From the way they found her, she was certain that Jennie was with her all the way; the way the blood formed around her was rather unusual and her bloodied knife looked like it was used briefly – not in a fight.
"Do you think," Rosé spoke as she turned to Chittip, who appeared to have caught on to her thoughts. "That Jennie tried to... save Lisa?"
Chittip nodded, "The stains around her lips showed signs of attempt."
"Would it have succeeded?" Rosé queried as Mina went over to Lisa to examine her further.
Chittip shook her head, "Under normal circumstance, it wouldn't."
"So you're saying that," Rosé tried to come to a conclusion, "Wolves drink blood only under extreme circumstances?"
"The circumstances must be of critical or grave nature," Mina answered as she examined Lisa's neck, "But from the way her wounds look," she added as she noted the cuts around Lisa's skin, "The process would have backfired."
A loud roar soon erupted as Lisa turned to her side then the other as her body went into an epileptic fit. The trio took a step back as they watch as Lisa's eyes drew gold; hair grew rapidly on her body as they witness her shift slowly. Rosé looked at her gun and checked the bullets, only to frown at the single shell inside.
Should Lisa draw her full form, they would have no means to defend themselves. From the way that she acted, they were certain that Lisa would attack them on sight; Chittip grew fearful for what may come as foam bubbled around Lisa's lips as she stopped mid-way from a full transformation.
All three of them watched as Lisa finally calmed down; the foam around her lips evaporated into the air. Her deep wounds along with the nearly peeled off skin on her shoulder slowly returned to normal, it healed itself as though they never existed. The trio grew wide-eyed at what just occurred, but two of them were suspicious rather than curious.
"Well," Rosé spoke as she holstered her gun, "I didn't expect that to happen."
Chittip turned to her, "Don't jinx it, Rosie."
"Why?" Rosé replied with a raised brow, "What's the worst that could happen?"
As Rosé let go of those words, Lisa's eyelids slowly opened and looked around the room; her vision was a blur and her ears were a little distant. She tried to get up and took a fighting stance; she knew not where she was, but she was certain about one thing - she had to escape her captors.
"Hey hey hey," Mina spoke as she took a step closer to Lisa, "Calm down."
"Yeah," Rosé chuckled a bit to lighten the mood, "No need to be so defensive."
From Lisa's view, she heard nothing but gibberish as she backed away from them; in her eyes, there were three illusive figures that she could not identify from her dizzy mind. Her feet wobbled as much as her head weighed like an anchor about to dock. How this came to be, she have no idea. Her head was nothing, but a big fat question mark.
"Lisa," Mina spoke as she took another step closer, "Can you tell us what happened?"
"Yeah, where's Jennie, Lis?" Rosé queried.
Lisa backed up against the open window as she felt the ledge; she tried to stabilize her vision as much as she tried to expel the dizziness from her mind. Looking over her shoulder, Lisa could only make out a short drop out of the premises – her only chance for escape. She looked back at the three figures, which nearly caught her, but before that even happened; she leant against the ledge and allowed herself to fall out of the window head first.
"Lisa!" Chittip screamed as the trio dashed towards the window.
"Why would she do that?!" Rosé exclaimed in disbelief as she leant over to check the ground for Lisa's fall. Clicking her tongue, she put a foot on the ledge to fall suit, but Mina held her back. "Mina, let go!"
"You can't!" Mina shouted back as she pulled Rosé away from the window, "All of us are worn out and tired," she explained as she held Rosé tight, "None of us will be able to find her at this state."
"But Li-"
"She's right," Chittip interjected and caught their attention, "We won't be able to find her at this state."
Accepting reality, Rosé sighed and tapped Mina's arm to release her from her tight hug; she appreciated her concern, but she wanted to follow Lisa regardless of her condition. Mina pulled away and frowned at Rosé; now was not the time to be reckless. If they were at their peak performance, she would not have prevented her from following Lisa, but even they were human – at least Roseanne and her.
For a moment, the three of them sat in a circle as they thought of a possible explanation for Lisa's action; however, not a single bubble popped out. Even Mina found her recovery unusual for a wolf because it nearly looked like she was vampire. The theory alone was not possible, simply because both bloods detested the other. It was that simple logic that explained why not a single human can have both lycan and vampiric bloodlines.
It would only cause an instant death.
With a deep sigh, Rosé got up and approached the window; as she peered out, she saw an old flatbed back up to the house. Marco got out of the car and entered the house; he went up at them in a circle as though they were in a deep discussion. He examined each of their expressions and noticed the grim look on them.
"What happened?" Marco queried as he approached Chittip. None of the trio could answer him and merely kept the frown on their lips. His eyes darted on the floor and realized one missing person. "Where's Lisa?"
Chittip looked away, "She jumped out of the window and disappeared."
"What!" Marco raised his voice slightly as he approached the said window, "Why didn't you follow her?"
Rosé frowned, "I wanted to, but I'm not at my best right now – none of us are."
"Damn this," Marco cursed silently as he walked over to his wife and hugged her, "We'll find her, don't worry."
Chittip just kept quiet as she found comfort in his arms; she was quite unsure what to tell him about the whole situation, but she was certain that he will not be pleased. She did not have any strength to argue with him and all she could do was blame herself for allowing this to happen - for allowing her child to be like that.
"Uncle," Mina spoke softly and caught his attention, "Did you smell Lisa, anywhere other than here, when you drove back?"
He raised a brow, "No, I didn't," he turned to her as Chittip looked at her as well, mostly caught everyone's attention. "As a matter of fact, I never thought this happened," he continued, "I smelt her in this room and none else."
Rosé raised a brow, "How is that possible?"
He shrugged, "I don't know, but its no-"
Before he finished his sentence, his mind hatched an egg and realized something; Lisa's stench was no longer there. It was there when he drove in, but now that he stood in the very room he smelt her; there was not a single trace of her scent. It was as though she was never there at all. Not even his brain can define the scent anymore as though it was never registered in his memory bank.
Mina raised a brow as she stared at the spot that Lisa laid on; it had marks of her perspiration and yet Gerald could not smell her. It made her wonder why or how this was even possible. It was as if it were the same as the enigma that they searched for.
Coming to this realization, Mina gasped and caught everyone's attention. All eyes were on her as she tried to think of what would be the best answer. To tell them now would only send them in a fit of disbelief and they would pursue Lisa, but if she does not, she can gather sufficient information to prove her theory.
"What is it, Mina?" Rosé queried as she approached her.
"Nothing concrete."
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"You seem out of it," Tablo spoke as he examined her carefully, "Did something happen, Jennie?"
Jennie shook her head, "No, nothing happened."
"Are you certain?" Tablo queried as he furrowed his brows, worry evident across his wrinkled face.
Jennie nodded and forced a smile, "Yes, I am."
With a frown, Tablo kept quiet and observed her; he was not fond of her silence and knew that something was definitely amiss. He kept his fatherly eye on her as she ate the cabbage casserole he prepared for their dinner; he was not expecting her to visit and had little time to prepare a feast for a person of her appetite.
Mentally sighing, he noted how weak she ate and only took two spoonful of his cabbage; he was unsure if she did not like it or if she was unwell. This was not how she was when she often came over, but he would admit that not every time she came over, she would be jolly; he prefer that she be happy than not.
"What seems to be the problem?" Tablo questioned her as worry overwhelmed him.
Jennie looked at him, "There is none, sir."
"Kiddo, don't lie to me," he replied, "I've lived long enough and well-enough to know when something is troubling someone," he continued as he held her hand that rested on the table, "Whatever troubles you have, you know I am always here for you."
Jennie smiled, "Thank you, sir."
"Well," he spoke as he took a spoonful of his food, "Will you tell me your troubles now?"
Jennie shook her head, "I'm sorry, sir, but may it wait until tomorrow?"
"Alright then," Tablo nodded as she continued her meal, "But you have to finish your food."
Jennie giggled, "I will, don't worry."
Delighted by her laughter, Tablo swept aside his thoughts and allowed Jennie to eat; he was satisfied by her answer and would want to hear what she had to say. Even though he wanted to know it now, he was tired as well and appreciated Jennie's postponement. Once he was done with his meal, he retired for the evening leaving Jennie alone to do the dishes.
As she sat there, Jennie wondered what Lisa would be doing; she knew full well what the consequences were. Despite this knowledge, she could not help but wonder if the seal's power was enough to suppress everything; she knew that Lisa was strong-willed, but will the seal's power make her falter?
In a zombie-like fashion, Jennie cleared the table and the dishes; her pace was not her usual one, but she was at the turtle lane. Her mind was occupied of the thoughts of what occurred last night; the moment she saw Lisa's body contort in madness to the taste of her blood.
Looking at her arm, there was not a single trace of the cut she had made – the one that stretched from her forearm to her wrist; it was as though she never did it. Caressing her forearm, she tried to recall the moment she saw life escape Lisa's body; it was a moment she had feared and would want to forget – not just her, but everything else.
As she walked to her room, she recalled the faces that she met along this path; from CL to Dara and from Kai to Mina, all of them were new to her and were the ones she did not expect to meet. Fate pulled them together like gravity that she did not anticipate for the seed to grow; it was never her plan to cross paths with another person.
Resting her head on the pillow, Jennie thought of erasing her memory from everyone else; she wanted none to remember her. She contemplated on this fact as she tried to recall the memories she shared with them; all those times she had none to turn to, they were there for her.
These people meant a lot to her and it nearly tore through her heart just at the thought of removing herself from their lives. It was a hard decision, but it must be done. She could see no alternative to this matter – the only other was their blood be spilt. She did not wish to alarm them nor cause them worry, but she had to do what must be done.
These thoughts swirled inside her head as she closed her eyes for sleep; she did not wish to think about it anymore as much as she wanted to forget them already. Not everyone wants to be devoid of friends – none but her. All those times she thought her life brought nothing but suffering, this was the answer – she was always different.
Downcast eyes glared down on her; cheek reddened by her hard hands. Looking away, she could not look both of them in the eye; she could no longer defend herself. The wound on her collar bone bled as she remained on the floor with a hand on her aching cheek.
"You dare run away with the likes of him? A peasant?"
"Please, my dear, leave her alone!"
"Silence!"
With another slap down her cheek, she sat there in shame as her mother's rage blinded her from seeing the real her. Her father could not soothe the rage even when he reasoned with her, it only fell on deft ears. Nothing seems to get through to her.
"You are nothing." She seethed as she circled around her with her head held high as her piercing gaze remained on her. "You're a no good child of mine!" she spat as she kicked her in the legs, "You will never be like us!"
"Enough!" her father's voice roared as her mother's gaze turned to him in disbelief, "Stop belittling our child, Haewon!"
"'Our' child?" Haewon scoffed and rolled her eyes on him, "This girl, whose neither wolf nor vampire, is 'our' child?"
"That's beyond the line," He seethed as his eyes turned gold as his biceps flexed slightly, "Don't talk like that about our daughter."
"Why wouldn't I?" Haewon spat back, her eyes turned red as well, "Do you think she has any place in my clan? Or your pack for that matter?"
Unable to fathom their bickering, she stood up from the floor and left the room; she did not wish to hear their unreasonable banter. Despite her mother's poisonous words, she was right; how could she be their child, when she was nothing but a mere human?
Escaping to her room, she sat on the stool in front of her vanity and examined her face; her amber eyes bore no resemblance to her mother's blue nor her father's brown. She could not understand why this came to be, when none in both sides of the familiar had any colour such as hers.
It boggled her as much as she wanted to know why this came to be. She never really knew or got to know the truth behind this and none in their families could ever explain. Even their servants that had been with the family for decades could not give her a definite answer.
The wound on her collarbone finally dried out as blood etched itself on her porcelain skin; this was the only mark she had left of him. Caressing the slightly painful wound, she could not help, but let tears escape her eyes; the pain in her heart could not even weigh her mother's brutal slaps.
As tears escaped her eyes, she looked at the roses that rested on the vase by the mirror; they were the last thing he gave her. She stared at them as she recalled every single memory both of them shared together; her tears dripped down onto her chest and eventually moistened the dry blood.
Soft sobs escaped her locked lips as her eyes closed to the pain of the memories; all of them were dear to her and now, there will not be any more than what they are. As her soft sobs echoed across her room, a faint light glimmered behind her closed eyes; slowly she opened her reluctant eyelids and found her chest no longer covered with blood.
"What?" she whispered as she touched the former trail of blood and felt her skin; there was not a single trace of it on her collar bone, yet the wound remained – now a scar. Tracing it, she could vaguely understand this extraordinary phenomenon that occurred; never in her whole life have any of her wounds just healed instantly.
Frightened, she stood up abruptly that made one of the stool's legs to screech against the wooden floor. She traced the wound once again and felt a heat over it; gasping, she took a step back as fear crossed her beautiful features.
What is this madness?
Horns blared in the distance as the sun rose. Jennie bolted up from bed with a river of perspiration around her head; she breathed as though the air was not enough. Another memory, she thought as her hand touched her chest; she took slow, deep breaths to catch her heartbeat as her finger grazed the scar on her collarbone.
In silence, she stared at the open air as she recalled those nights – the nights she dreaded to be born unto such a powerful family. As the orange hue of the sun covered the room, Jennie got up; she left the room after fixing up the bed and left through the front door. She did not wish to wake Tablo and answer his question.
The lock clicked behind her and she walked towards the gate; she looked around to see if anyone was there – anyone she knew that would see her. She walked down the sidewalk and proceeded to the school because today was a Saturday – she had work. The world around her seemed cheerful as though nothing went wrong.
Ignorance truly is bliss.
Jennie thought as she reached the centre of town where most of the people have begun clearing out the front of their shops; none were open at that particular hour just yet. Jennie was too early and did not bother to fix herself up for the day; her mind wandered elsewhere that she had no reason to doll up.
After an hour of a walk, she was in front of the school gates; there, she stood by the back exit where she first met Lisa. Her heart nearly sank just at the thought of it; every single second that went, she recalled how they met, at how she saw her beautiful doe eyes under her hood. All these things made her realise that her world was already revolving around her.
Reluctantly, she took a step inside the campus and with a heavy heart, she tried to erase this memory from her bank; as much as she did not wish to, she knew that there would not be any reason to keep it any longer. The consequences of the seal were in a word, irreversible; not even she, who created it, could ever undo it.
"My lady," a familiar voice called out to her, "You seem early today."
Jennie kept her head straight, "Do you want me to be late?"
"No, my lady," he replied with a hint of humor in his tone as he walked in tandem with her, "I'm just surprised to see you up."
Jennie sighed indifferently, "I'm not who I was – at least, not anymore."
"Yes, of course," he replied with a gentle smile across his bearded lips as he fished out the keys from his pockets and opened the door for her, "After you, my lady."
Jennie mentally sighed and closed her eyes for a moment, "I don't think I will ever look at you the same again."
"I understand, my lady," he followed behind her, his face showed dejection, "I will return to the shadows if you so wish."
Jennie halted abruptly, "Jiyong," then turned to him; he immediately bowed his head and knelt in front of her, "I don't want you to leave," she continued as she put a hand on his head to show her appreciation, "I apologize if I may seem distant."
"No, the fault is mine, my lady," Jiyong replied as he shook his head, "It's not my place to decide," he lifted his lowered gaze up to her as Jennie retracted her arm, "I shall accept any punishment you deem worthy, my lady."
Jennie shook her head, "A punishment is unnecessary."
"But-"
"As I said," Jennie interjected as she turned around and resumed her pace towards the janitor's closet, "I am not the person I was before."
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
"The beast has retreated with the rest!"
"Casualties are nearly at fifty percent!"
"The numbers of the wounded are steadily increasing!
"Several trucks have been destroyed!"
The radios were in chaos as news from all over the base rang all over the room; rain fogged the translucent glass as the angel no longer smiled over him. Boonluang sat on his tall, leather seat as held his hands together, fingers intertwined; his mind wandered to what occurred not too long ago.
Updates echoed from every corner of the room. His eyes were shut as he listened to every detail they gave him; he wanted to know what the best move would be. As he listened, he recalled his granddaughter's wounds and knew that she was already a wolf – a being that lived longer than a normal human.
That power.
Boonluang whispered in his thoughts as he clenched his fingers tight that nearly shook his hands from the force of his anger. The power he craved for a long time had finally landed onto his lap and he allowed it to escape just like that; he knew better than to let such an opportunity go – the very opportunity that drove his own father mad.
"Master," his knight – the left hand of the clan – walked through the tall doors and knelt, "We await your orders."
Boonluang slowly raised his eyelids that revealed a pair of piercing blue eyes, "How many have you gathered?"
"Thirty at best, master," he replied with his gaze lowered to the floor.
Boonluang furrowed his brows, "That is not enough!"
"Forgive me, master," the knight quickly apologized as Boonluang's voice thundered inside his armor and shook his very bones, "We attained a great loss tonight, master."
Aware of this truth, Boonluang stared at his knight as he thought of an alternative; he knew well enough that thirty men – professional or not – were not enough to capture a full-grown wolf. It would at least take a hundred men to take one down – especially during a full moon.
Spinning his chair around, he faced his translucent window and took a crisp cigar from out of his coat, then brought it in between his lips. He took out his lighter in the shape of a knife and flicked on the fire that set the edges of the knife aflame. His knight, loyal and patient, waited for him to send out orders, eager to carry out his master's mission.
A small trail of smoke came from behind the tall, leather chair as he kept his head down. Boonluang stared at the translucent glass, at the angel that has often looked out after him – at times, his clan. The angel bore a gloom upon her wings as Boonluang dipped the ashes of his cigar onto the tray.
"Allow everyone to rest," Boonluang finally spoke as he closed his eyes for a moment, "Now is not a good time to stalk our prey," he continued as the chatter from the radios resumed, "Our priority now is recovery of the clan."
"As you wish, master," the knight replied as he got up and turned about; he was somewhat disappointed by his decision, but nonetheless obeyed. As he approached the door, the radio chatter suddenly died down and caught his attention; he turned to Boonluang and stared at the table.
"Unknown entity spotted at the northern wall."
Boonluang pressed the button, "Identify."
"It appears to be just one person, sir, possibly the young master."
He furrowed his brow, "Do not engage."
"But sir-"
Boonluang pressed the button again and turned the receivers off; he slowly tried to stand as he put his hands behind his back. A sly grin crept against his lips as his brilliant mind compounded ideas – tortures and experiments fit for no human. His head was already running possibilities of what he could achieve if it were truly Lalisa that stood just a few feet away from him.
His body nearly shook with glee and lust – the greed for power; his mind was clouded by the thoughts of an eternal life – the immortality his father failed to achieve. I will achieve what you never did, he mentally boasted as he listened to the descriptions of the enemy over the radio.
The descriptions were unmistakable, but it did make him wonder; despite this, he did not care. All he wanted was what any man in this forsaken world wanted – infinite time. He stared out the window as thunder rumbled overhead as much as lightning threatened to strike; the sky did not agree with his thoughts.
"Your orders, master?" The knight asked politely as he faced him; he could already tell what his command would be. Boonluang closed his eyes as he tried to compose himself; he slowly turned around and faced him. His sharp eyes spoke of a much greater evil that his knight could only wonder at what it could possibly be.
"Bring her to me."