Chapter 1 - I Confessed
‘Gwyllomay, the evergreen trees of this winter district remind me of our love.’
That same voice had been running its course through my head for quite some time now. I couldn’t get it out. That saccharine tone of an unconditional woman.
Running a hand down the back of my hair, I bit my lip. The familiar taste of my own flesh felt good. Licking the outer area of my cheek, I drew in a deep breath. The air around me had this aroma of fresh, yet stale. Open, yet closed. Free, yet trapped.
A little salty too, perhaps?
“Oi, Gwyll! The train’s departing. Get on, dude!”
Huh?
The loud wailing of a train, the roars of conductors with striped hats, and the hissing snap of steam all appeared in front of me.
“Oh, right. Sorry, Smithwell.” I shake my head and turn.
“Smithwell?” My friend shrugged his shoulders beneath that black, tight shirt of his.
He had a face the same shade as a chocolate-chip cookie. I admired this kind of tan.
“Why do you insist on callin’ me by my last name so much, you flippin’ weirdo! Haha. I’m-”
”Daniel. I know.” I shoved my hands into the pockets of my denim jeans, walking up the steps into a velvet, trolley-like vehicle.
Daniel laughed quietly as he trailed in front of me. “Well, old habits die hard I suppose. Heh. I mean- I guess. Ah.So!How’s it feel?”
The two of us found a seat to the right of a window. Like this, we could see the countryside of Ruthberg. Tall trees, bushes, and other such greenery for as far as the eye could see. Quaint, peaceful, yet adventurous at the same time.
I sighed.
It stung to leave this land behind, and there was no avoiding that. My eyes rolled back to Smithwell, away from the view of nature. “How does it ‘feel’? Well, strange! Foreign. In one sense, I’m a bit sad to leave the picture-esque ‘kingdom’ of Ruthberg, but I also am a little excited to see this new place.”
Smithwell nodded, his lips grinning as his tropical-orange hair frilled near the top. “Exactly! Though, I guess I’m a little more excited than you a- My cowlick is acting up again,isn’t it? Bloody hell. Ugh, joy. Truly, it’s the little things, as they say. Anyway, Ruthberg is such a relic. Great for a vacation, terrible place to actually live. Everything isso19th century. Boring! Though that train station was hella cute, wasn’t it?”
I thought back to the station. A bustling spot with all sorts of kiosks and people, centralized in a concrete-filled encasement which led out to the view of the kingdom.
Chuckling, I crossed my arms over the table which separated our acrostic seating-arrangements.
The white button-up I put on this morning makes me feel like a damn pirate, and I’m definitely not one of those.
Granted, the blue overcoat’s a nice addition. Makes me feel like some soldier for some revolutionary war. Ha.
“It was nice, yes. I remember when they first built it.” Uncrossing my arms, I rested my chin over my right hand.
“What? Dude, they made this train-stop like 120 years ago.” Smithwell widened his eyes quickly, still smiling, and tossed his gaze out the window.
“Uh! I mean- I rememberlearningabout when they made it, yes. Hmhmhm.”
Smithwell and I have been friends for a long time, but I don’t think I’m ready to tell him some things just yet.
His tan face and sunset-colored hair were gorgeous for a... man. Then again, I haven’t been exposed to many men in about -- how long’s it been -- 400 years? Ha. I’ve been unaccustomed to how the modern man can be so handsome.
“Well,” Smithwell yawned. “I’m hungry. When are they gonna serve us any food on here? It is very ‘old-fashioned’, so they say. I’m thinkin’ that we’ll get some potato-puree, with chives, or spiced ham. What do you think?”
“What do I think they’ll serve on a train?” Simply shrugging, I run a hand through my thick hair. “Not sure. Probably sweets of some kind? Cinnamon buns, chocolate cakes, cookies, or -- oh, I don’t know -- pumpkin pie?”
“Pumpkin pie? This isn’t America.”
Contrary to his tone, I remember that being one of his favorite desserts.
“You bet.” I smirk.
“Well, I should be so lucky! Ha. Nonetheless, I have some family over where we’re going, you see.”
“I see. B- By the way, where are we going, again? I forgot the name of this place.”
“You know, I’m gonna lie if I say I didn’t either. Uh-” Pulling out his phone, he traced the screen until his eyes lit up. “Oh! Autumnia County. Pretentious name, I know, but it’s very modern. Lots of apartments and shit. Not like here in Ruthberg, where the taxes on thesecastlesare bigger than my future.” Rolling his eyes, Smithwell put his phone away, then suddenly held his breath. “I should probably keep my phone out, actually. Damn train ride’s gonna be two hours. I’m gonna need somethin’ to do.”
“Right, of course.” I pulled my own phone out of my pocket, and quickly felt an odd sense of alienation.
”Thatis a flip-phone from 2006. Gwyll, you still haven’t updated?”
Blushing and feeling my left eye twitch, I put my it back in my pocket. “I’m outdated, I know.” I almost whisper in a deep, terse voice.
“ATTENTION, ALL PATRONS ABOARD. EMERGENCY! PLEASE BE ADVISED.” A loud call on the intercom blared into my attention just then. “A member aboard this express has just climbed onto the rooftop. We will be stopping the train and working to bring the individual down to safety.”
And, by the way, thatname. The county we’ll be living in. ‘Autumnia’. Why did it sound so-
“Whoa!” Smithwell jumped out of his seat and pointed to the window.
“Ah, jeez!”
Scooting out of my seat after turning my head, I gritted my teeth.
There, outside the window, was a red-robed individual who had agunin their hand.
Smithwell and I ran out of the line of sight and further down into the train.
“You two need to be seated!” The intercom called out.
“Yeah, certainly. Let’s just be in the line of fire with that gunner!” Smithwell yelled back, his black shirt fluffing in the wind he generated. “Don’t mind Idomake myself a sitting-duck, eh? No thank you!”
“Tsk. Love your sass, Smithwell.” I winked as we ran.
Glass broke just then. Of course, why wouldn’t it? Looking back, the aggressor had now made their way onto the train. Multiple gunshots into the construction of that window made an easy opening for an intruder to break into.
This was no ‘patron’, obviously.
This was some sort of criminal, and yet... they looked familiar.
‘Gwyllomay, the evergreen trees of this winter district remind me of our love.’
There went that voice again, running through my head, and filling me with a morose melancholy.
“Gwyllomay! Up there!”
My eyes awoke to Smithwell pointing to a ladder. A way out of this tight train and onto the... roof.Yes, of course- Wait! Wait, why would I wanna go on the roof? It’ll be dangerous up there. Then again- I mean,I’dbe able to survive. Not sure aboutDaniel,though.
Nevertheless, we ran without thinking, grabbing onto the ladder with Smithwell trailing in front of me, as usual.
“Get back here, demon!” Looking back, I saw the intruder calling after me.
Demon? Pffft. Don’t make me laugh! Those things don’t exist. I can tell you whatdoesexist, though.
As I got out, onto the roof, the wind blared in my face, almost making it hard to take in any air, at first.
“Okay, so this train is stopped andwillstop until they deal with that random psycho guy, so, we should justwalkthe tracks to our destination.”
“Daniel, you usually have a series ofwildideas like that, but now’s really not the ti-”
“Found you!” Around my feet, a series of black dust landed, courtesy of the intruder.
“What?” I gritted my teeth, my azure gaze penetrating this annoying stranger.
“What’s going on? So, you’re afterhim, not me?” Smithwell put his hands up, tilting his head forward to the woman.
This female aggressor’s hair flowed out long and blond, tied in a series of baguette-esque braids in the back. “You- You are a human. Please, leave while I tend to thismonster.”
I closed my eyes and chortled. “Mhmhmhm. Monster, you say? So, you’re an agent ofTemplethen.” My feet clung to the gray iron below me.
“What? Gwyllomay?” Smithwell stepped back, gaining distance between this intruder and I.
“That’s right. I’m a divine soldier of the organization known as T.E.M.P.L.E. We slay monsters, such as yourself.” The blonde spoke with an odd accent.
French, possibly?
“I guess,” I looked down at the robed person’s shoes. “I couldn’t run away forever. You finally caught me. Kudos to you.”
”Gwyllomay Poli-fucking-dori,what the hell are you on about?” Smithwell clenched his fist.
I heard the veins in his fingers expand with agitation.
I didn’t turn around. Icouldn’tturn around. Facing my long-time friend wasn’t something I could go through with right now. His tone sounded so betrayed.
Sighing, I frowned. “Smithwell, I was going to tell you when the time was right. I really was-”
“Tell me what? How long have we been friends, huh? Honestly, I totally don’t appreciate the secrets, Gwyll! And, like, now, of all times! Really? It’s a bit spooky, you know- Bein’ tailed be a stranger with a gun on a train, and all.”
My azure eyes flashed to a deep crimson. Stuffing my hands into my pockets, I continued to keep my gaze over thisagent. Licking my lips, I smirked.
“I,” A rush of excitement and anxiety ran through my veins. “am a vampyre.”
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