Chapter 7 – Revelations part 1

  What I’m about to tell you happened centuries ago, during a time when humans and magical beings coexisted, separated but in harmony.

  The world was divided by three barriers, which separated the beings of light, the beings of darkness, and humans.

  Back then, Patrick’s personality was quite different from what it is now; he was warm, kind, and attentive. You could say innocence ruled his will.

  He had been recently turned, and at that time, dark beings were strictly forbidden from crossing the border into any other realm. Attempting to do so was punishable by death.

  Yet Patrick’s power, even less formidable than it is now, was extraordinary. Crossing the borders posed little difficulty for him. Every night, he mingled among the crowds, either out of boredom or curiosity about what lay beyond the barriers. To this day, I couldn’t tell you his exact reason for doing so.

  One night, in the realm of the beings of light, he ventured into the Forest of Beacons. There, he spotted the silhouette of a stunning woman in a crystalline spring.

  Guided by the unbridled curiosity of a child, Patrick hid behind the lush foliage, crouching among shrubs and trees, to gaze at something his eyes had never before beheld: a woman of such beauty and elegance as to be unmatched. Her long, alabaster hair framed her ebony-toned skin, which seemed to glow as if imbued with an inner light. Her eyes, a pale and transparent blue, were as clear as spring water.

  But her beauty wasn’t the only thing that captivated Patrick—her wings, large and butterfly-like, caught his gaze. Their color faded from soft pink to a shimmering white-gold.

  “Who’s there?” Tult?en called out, startled by the snap of a twig. Covering her chest and searching the foliage, her gaze landed on a silhouette. “I’ve got you,” she muttered under her breath.

  White, glowing symbols spread across her body, reaching up to her head. Extending her free arm, she unleashed a gust of wind, sending Patrick flying several meters from where he had been hiding.

  As my friend groaned in pain—well-deserved, I might add—Tult?en hurried out of the spring to confront him.

  “What are you doing here, and why were you spying on me?” she demanded angrily.

  “I…” Patrick began but fell silent as he realized she was completely nude. Embarrassment overtook him immediately. “Please… cover yourself,” he stammered, his face flushing crimson.

  Oh, you should’ve seen him when he told me this! He was so red, his face like a tomato, about to burst from the sheer embarrassment. That day, all he wanted was to rest, but he was so smitten, all he could talk about was her—Tult?en this and Tult?en that.

  Anyway, let’s return to the story. She, not having realized her nudity, quickly ducked behind the nearest bushes, shouting in mortification.

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  “Pardon me… if it’s not too much to ask, could you hand me the garment to your right?” she pleaded, peeking out from the shrubbery and gesturing toward her belongings.

  After a few minutes, Tult?en emerged, now dressed in an elegant green gown. The glowing symbols that had adorned her body had vanished, and her wings were no longer visible. After thanking him and smoothing out her dress, she sat beside the flustered Patrick.

  “What are you?” he asked, his curiosity burning.

  “A sylph,” she replied, tilting her head at him. “Although I find it strange you didn’t know that.” She turned to study him more closely. “Then again, you don’t seem to be from around here,” she added with a playful smirk, her gaze never leaving the now thoroughly embarrassed Patrick. “How did you manage to cross the barrier? You must harbor immense power within you…”

  And so began a conversation between the two young strangers. They talked through the night, as though time itself had stopped. She was eager to learn more about his world, while he… well, he claimed he wanted to know more about sylphs, though we both knew he really just wanted to learn more about her.

  Hours turned into days, and days into months, during which the two met in secret, away from prying eyes. Ostensibly, they sought to learn more about each other’s lives. But both Patrick and I knew this was merely a pretext—he was well aware of his true feelings. He knew, no matter how much he denied it, that he had fallen in love with her at first sight.

  Until one day, fate revealed the truth about my dear friend—a truth he had desperately tried to keep hidden.

  On a sunny day in the Crystal Petal Garden, the two lay upon a soft bed of flowers. Swans and fish danced in the radiant water nearby.

  “All beings, whether human, animal, or flower, have their place in this world,” Tult?en mused, running her fingers over plush tulips.

  “Even lifeless stones?” Patrick asked, his gaze fixed on her lovely face like that of a curious five-year-old.

  “Even lifeless stones,” she answered with a warm smile. “Don’t you think it’s time you told me what you are? You’ve been hiding your power ever since we met.”

  Her playful look of disapproval made him laugh as he brushed a stray strand of hair behind her ear. With ease, he leapt into the sky, leaving a trail of scattered petals in his wake.

  “Guess,” he called down to her.

  Without hesitation, she spread her wings and joined him, beginning a game of seduction reminiscent of butterflies in flight.

  “I can fly too, just like you. But that doesn’t tell me what you are,” she teased, her lips mere inches from his. Placing a hand on his chest, she used a burst of wind to send him hurtling toward the ground. But before he could fall, Patrick grabbed her hand, and together they descended, landing with Patrick on top of her. Body against body, gaze locked with gaze.

  “What are you?” she asked with a wide smile, brushing petals from her face.

  For the first time, seeing her sweet smile, her skin adorned with petals, and her crystalline blue eyes gazing back at him, Patrick couldn’t deny it. He realized then that he loved her, with all his being and soul.

  But as he became aware of his true feelings—feelings he had long buried—he lost control.

  Breathing in her sweet scent, that intoxicating lily-of-the-valley fragrance that always brought him peace, he leaned closer, stopping just shy of her lips. His vivid blue eyes began to glow.

  But as he seemed about to kiss her, Patrick moved instead toward her neck. In that instant, the part of him he despised most—the beast within—took over. He tried to attack the very thing he loved most.

  Yet his will overpowered his instincts, and he pulled away at lightning speed, covering his mouth with his hand.

  “You… you’re a vampire,” Tult?en uttered in a broken voice, realizing his true nature.