The Amber Forest

The Alps, France, 1128

The night had its deepest blue, a colour not unusual for that time of the year. The crescent moon shed its light on two figures that were running fast through the dense forest, towards the clearing.

“The stones” the shorter one gasped, as they reached their destination. “They are placed in a triangle.”

The other man, Geronimo Deilyns, nodded with no sign of weariness at all, on him.

“They ’ve arrived.” Calmly he handed the shorter man a scroll that was carefully placed in a wooden case. “It is finally over. The only thing you can do to serve me now, is to protect the child. He is the only one left of my kind.”

“They won’t find him, Jerome. No one will harm him, I promise you that!” the shorter man couldn’t contain his feelings before that unavoidable separation.

“You must leave, I feel them closeby!” the taller man said. “Once I enter the triangle I will be vulnerable and I won’t be able to protect you, in there.”

The other man acted like he didn’t hear Jerome’s command. He stood gripping the case tightly, without the courage to walk away.

“You know which route to follow. Go!” the taller man demanded, as both of them felt their eyes welling up. The human and his lynsei master have been together for decades. The servant, who had proven his devotion many times before, could not follow this order, as he knew that he’d never see Geronimo again.

Geronimo looked at him pleadingly as the time was running out.

The human servant, tightened his grip around the case, and began to descend the slope hastily, as much off the path, as possible. He didn’t turn back, in fear that he might to see the end of his beloved master. The only thought in his mind was to prove worthy of his responsibility to protect the only child that Geronimo had fathered, the last of the lynsei spieces.

Geronimo waited until he couldn’t hear his servant’s steps anymore, then he took a deep breath as he entered the triangular part of the clearing, that was defined by three engraved stones. For a few moments, as the scent of the forest filled his body, he felt hope again. An exhausting ten-years hunt would come to an end. He had to sacrifice himself, while his son’s existence was still a secret. They had to believe they were killing the last of his kin.

His legs buckled under the negative impact of the triangle, but he forced his body to resist.

He hadn’t been long inside the clearing, when he heard the rustling of leaves that accompanied footsteps, from the deep dark of the forest. He calmly waited, until a young man appeared from the shadows, like a nocturnal animal. In the moonlight, his eyes shone with an eerie green light. Few moments later, another man with a shorter and sturdier body, enter the clearing and stood beside the man with the green eyes.

“You ’ve entered the triangle so easily, It’s like admitting your defeat!” the taller smirked, revealing his sharp white teeth. “Tell me, did you see that coming, lynsei?”

“Ten years of hunting doesn’t seem like an easy task to me, Gideon, you have to admit it! Let’s just say that I lost the last battle a bit faster than you expected.”

“Does it matter? Tonight we will win, and your entire kin will end with your death!” the sturdier of the two trembled as he spoke the words.

The lynx in the triangle smiled ironically.

“Our annihilation won’t save you, werewolf. Soon, you two ‘allies’ will be fighting with each other.” His ominous words reminded them of the eternal hatred between their species. They may have acted like allies during the long, dark war, but this was not the usual case between vampires and werewolves, and everyone knew.

The sturdy man looked suspiciously at the young man beside him, and growled between his teeth, as if he agreed with the words of the lynsei, reluctantly.

"You are our problem,” the taller one answered. “Not the children of the moon.”

“And now I stand weak before you. I’ve accepted that my story comes to an end.” The lynx opened his arms wide, an open invitation for the other two men to feast on him .

“Very strange. Won’t you fight for your life?” the sturdy one growled angrily, deprived of the excitement of the hunt.

“We have been at war for ten years, Dejustin! Haven’t you had enough of death? What change will it make if I don’t give up now?” the lynx asked when he saw the anger in the werewolf’s eyes.

“Your death can satisfy me, but your suffering before it, would be a blessing,” the werewolf replied.

Lighter footsteps were heard, before a woman appeared from behind the trees. She seemed to glide ethereally on the path, until she reached the two men and stood beside the vampire. Her slanted cat-like eyes were fixated on Jerome’s eyes , as if trying to delve deep into his thoughts.

“He surrenders too easily” she murmured as threads of doubt were woven through her mind.

“Alisa...” the lynx uttered her name in a sad manner. He knew that the woman before him was meticulous and very attentive to details. So to keep his secret, everything had to end quickly. He had to act before the others started to suspect that something was wrong. And most important, before his feelings for her got the best of him.

“He’s hiding something,” she repeated, more intensely.

Her slanted eyes were still on him. For the first time that night, the lynx began to worry.

“Yes... you’re hiding something, Geronimo!” The expressions on his face was a familiar territory to her, and she could easily see through him.

“Let’s not waste any more time, Alisa! I know you ’ve waited a long time for this!” the lynx said and slit the vains of his hands. He knew very well the outcome of such action, as the scent of his blood drove mad the men across him.

Alisa might have discovered the lynx’s secret, had not been for the thirst that overtook the other men in the clearing. Before she could stop them, they rushed into the triangle and furiously tore Jerome’s flesh apart.