Eclipse: CH 6

Chapter 6

He woke up with a start, panting and sweating from his strange dream. As always, only a fragment of it stayed, leaving him with a vague sense of urgency.

The howling was much closer, louder than it used to be. Likewise, it felt like the light is getting closer too (is he nearing the exit?). But there was something else in the shadows just a step behind him.

 

What was it?

 

What do all of these means?

 

The last time he had a similar dream was when he was still a child. His mother had been quite…shocked when he told her of it. Her reaction had always puzzled him; being a child, strange dreams doesn't feel as odd as it did to him now. And it didn't feel as foreboding too. The fact that it resumed after a long time - after he got bitten is definitely a flag of some kind. But he doesn't know who he can talk it out to.

Of course, he can always rant about it to Gai and Haruto (though, he can already see their reactions). He knows they'll listen to him, doesn't make it all the easier for him to just dump it on them.

If only his mother is still around..

 

He shook his head. No, he shouldn't think like that. But she would've at least known something.

 

Rubbing his bare neck as if to ward of a foreign sensation. He's sure he got bitten again on his last encounter with the pureblood. He can only remember up until the beginning of their clash, everything afterward is muddy. It disturbed him that the next thing he know, he's already back in his room with nothing out of place. Door locked, windows shut, curtains drawn close. How?

 

Nobody else noticed anything too.

 

How? Why?

 

So far, nothing the man does made sense to him. There should be some logic to his actions.

 

"Why do you have a silver sword?"

"I wonder why."

 

Was it his? Or did he pick it up from somewhere?

Why would a vampire pick up a silver blade of all things? Surely one of his calibre wouldn't need protection from fellow vampires.

If otherwise then it would mean that he was a human - a priest, specifically. No one else carries silver-based weaponries except them. Appearance wise, the man doesn't seem to be that much older than him, however that can only help him so much. Existing data proof enough that vampires stopped aging past the age they were turned.

But the purebloods weren't turned, were they? They are the root source of the vampires, but they themselves weren't turned. At least not like how the other vampires were made. Then again, a large bulk of that information were based on assumptions and extrapolated theories. Still, there must be something that happened to allow them to exist in the first place.

 

Stuck too deep in his thoughts, he subconsciously moves around the place. During his intense internal monologue, he had drifted from his room out to the library; habitual activities fade into the background unnoticed. After an indeterminate amount of time browsing through the shelves, he settled down at one of the tables with a pile of books. Some are age old, covered in a film of dust while others are fairly new.

 

 

"Oh, it's strange to see you here." The voice startled him from his avid research. Looking upward he saw a familiar face, though similarly one he doesn't usually see outside of a certain place.

"Oh, Dr Hojo. Didn't think I'd see you here too."

"That's quite a number of books you have there. Are you researching something?"

"Yeah, a bit. Just curious about my case from last time. Are you studying too, doctor? Looks like you're carrying quite a lot too."

The man adjusted his hold on his pile, holding them up slightly. "Yes, I am. Since there's not much patient around I might as well use the time." A short pause follows. "I see, you're still thinking of that. Well it's the rarest of occurrences so it's a given, I guess. Do you really feel nothing strange after that?"

The question caught him. For a moment Ryuga considered telling him about the odd dreams, but ultimately chooses not to.

"No, I don't." The doctor nods in understanding.

"Is that so. But don't hesitate to tell whenever something feels off. We're open all the time."

"I got that."

 

The doctor went away afterward. He's always nice and attentive towards his patients and friends alike, but Ryuga is silently thankful he didn't press in any further. He knows he probably should report the effects he's having right now; however, he has his reasons for not doing that yet.

He promptly returns to task at hand; first he needs to know what is he possibly going against. Data regarding them is scarce at best but he's not one to give up easily. The answer should exist somewhere, he just needs to find it.

 

After spending hours of perusing through thousands of words, it's proving to be a difficult task. Flipping close the tenth book, he heavily leaned back into his chair. Wonder if it's due to difference in source material; none of them completely matches his experience. He did find some similar points, but some others were misses. Does the effect differs that much depending on individuals?

Just as he was resting, he hears footsteps coming his way.

 

"I thought just who might be buried in books at this hour, turns out it's you." A familiar voice came along with its owner peeking from over the pile of books set in front of him. "Strange seeing you here, Ryuga."

"Ah, Gai. Nothing, just needed to clear up something."

"Is it about that?"

"Yeah. But nothing really matches up here. And there's a lot of missing parts too."

Gai hummed thoughtfully. "Why not visit the Northern Church? They have the most extensive archive within the country. Anything missing elsewhere should be available there."

The northern...But that would mean travelling out. It'll be quite tough to decide with the still ongoing crisis. And his current condition too.

"Is that so. Thanks, Gai. I'll consider that."

 

 

-

 

 

The sky darkens as the sun slowly sinks into the western horizon. His walk back to the dormitory is accompanied by the loud chirping of birds returning to their nests high up in the trees growing around the building. After an entire day searching to no avail, he opted to carry some back with him. Who knows, he might find something later.

He's somewhat thankful the crowd thins out in this part of the church's ground. Strange, it is. There are three dorms altogether and he happens to live in the one least occupied. There's probably like four other people in this building; all living quite far apart. To think of it, it's not odd at all for no one to notice anything weird happening here - it's rather far back compared to the other two, and it's mostly empty too.

 

There was a sudden chill down his spine despite nothing seemingly out of place right at the moment.

 

Subconsciously, he hurries his pace.

 

What is it?

Just what is it?

Ever since he woke up, there's a buzzing feeling under his skin, and heat building up in his systems. Not to mention the on and off ringing in his ears.

What the hell is going on with me?

 

He tried shaking his head to clear it away. It didn't work. For some reason now he can hear the muffled howling even during his waking hours. But unlike in the dreams, it's broken; like a damaged recording.

 

Roughly slamming the door to his room shut, he heavily leans against the wooden door, only sober enough to drop the books onto the nearby desk.

 

A strange feeling deep in his core; growing, burning. The coat became a tad too stuffy and constricting to stay on for any longer. Pulling it off, he carelessly throws it over the chair. The buzzing becomes stronger and standing feels like too much of an effort. His hand reflexively shot out to grip the edge of the table as he keels over, barely registering the arm that goes around his waist to pull him up against a firm body.

 

The last thing he hard before he blacked out was a voice in a low whisper.

 

 

 

"Looks like you could use some help, priest."