Hours Later…
The Eclipse Bar was silent.
Everyone had long since left, leaving behind only the dim lights and the lingering scent of smoke, sweat, and wine. Lucian decided it was time to return home before the sun rose… It was ironic, considering how he only ever felt alive at night.
He glanced at the runes etched into the doorframe. They still glowed faintly with blue light... No bloodshed here. Not unless you wanted your soul cursed for eternity.
In the back room, Lucian adjusted his coat, adjusing himself. Behind him, Randall entered, his eyes meeting in the reflection.
"What now?" Randall asked. He didn't expect a straight answer. Not from Lucian.
Lucian said nothing.
Randall sighed, continuing anyway. He'd known Lucian long enough to read between the silences.
"I know you want to keep your past buried," he said. "But if you keep pushing forward like this, it's going to claw its way back. That werewolf fool? Just a scavenger. Caught the scent of something old… thought it made him dangerous."
Lucian turned from the mirror, smirked faintly, as he fitted his mask. When he spoke, his voice was a low, misted whisper.
"Relax, Randall. I'm not here to start a war. Your bar's safe… and so am I."
Without another word, he stepped forward, brushing past him. Randall didn't stop him… but he watched closely, brow furrowed, unsure if Lucian believed his own words. Any could go wrong.
He knew more than most about the truths of Lucian's buried past.
Specifically, after Lucian first arrived, bleeding and half-dead, he needed a place to lay low… somewhere to survive. Randall gave him that. The only other human Lucian ever allowed close enough to help.
He never spoke of the past. Not directly. But Randall knew enough. Knew that "safe" could mean anything.
A dangerous place like this, despite believing so. Randall wanted Lucian to trust him, they been thought alot in the past few years. He just didn't know Lucian was confident, in his words.
"Tick."
The sound of the door clicking shut echoed.
Randall exhaled, dragging his hand down his tired face. Through his fingers, his eyes lowered to the floor, his foot began tapping against the boards… faster and faster.
Whatever he does… it won't just ripple through the underworld. It'll tear it apart… From the wolves word. How much longer, can I pretend this is neutral grounds?
…
Outside, under the moonlight, Lucian moved through the nearly empty streets.
"Nearly" because only the creatures of the night remained. The kind he used to walk among, the ones who enjoyed for the dark the way he did.
He heard their faint, inhuman breaths echoing around him, eyes traced him from rooftops, alleys, and shadows. But none stepped forward. Not yet.
Still, he walked with ease, no fear to show, his mind drifted back to the pack leadef… the warning he gave.
If there was truth to it, Lucian had no choice.
I need to find them soon. Learn what they gained.
To outrun his past, he'd to change everything… his habits, his hunger, even the parts of himself he once indulged into like wine.
That was the cost. And it hurt, he once relished the hunger. Now… he resisted it with every breath.
As Lucian stepped forward, his vision tilted slightly… he suddenly stumbled, catching himself against a cold stone wall.
"Thum! Thum!"
His heart thundered in his chest, he glanced down, his eyes widened. He first noticed, faint cracks, spreading like lightning across his porcelain skin.
"No… This can't be happening. I've made it this far without it… why now?" he whispered, his voice trembling.
The last time this happened… It was when he'd first arrived in Ebonhaven… starving, he was alone, broken.
He'd usually never went so long without feeding. Before, he gave in. And it hooked him… became his routine, then an addiction.
Stopping after that… felt like dying.
How much longer can he resist before he becomes what he feared most?
His thoughts were cut off by a familiar, primal feeling that only evil creatures had… Bloodlust!
Pressing into him from all sides.
They think I'm weak. Easy prey. That will be their first and last mistake!
Lucian's eyes flicked to the rooftops and alleyways. He saw dozens of glinting eyes in the darkness.
He smirked.
In the city, weakness was death… but appearances? They could be weapons.
Why does Ebonhaven let monsters blend in, but punish them for revealing their nature?
Who made those laws… and who enforces them now?
He coughed…intentionally, he decided to bluff.
However, he felt a sudden warmth in his mask
Blood… His own, his eyes widened that was the first time it had ever happened while in this state.
The moment it hit the air, he felt a change, the creatures smelled it. It smelt, rich, potent and irresistible.
A cold pressure pressed down on him.
"Co…"
Before he could ready himself, he suddenly collapsed into a water puddle, his limbs trembling, to get up, but his strength gone.
The darkness surged toward him… He was dazed, all his strength disappeared.
Is this it? Is this how I die? After everything…
He couldn't fight back. He didn't want to die… but part of him whispered he deserved it.
Maybe this is what I deserve… after all the things I've done.
Yet… that man whoever he was, whatever he meant… was the only thing Lucian had worried about since arriving in the city.
As his vision began to blur.
"Flick!"
Lightning cracked the sky. Rain began to fall.
And in that instant… silver glints tore through the dark. The silver was fast, precise and eadly.
That all creatures were dead before they even hit the ground… He couldn't even follow, his eyes closed into unconsciousness.
What… was that? What could kill them so quickly?
A familiar voice echoed… soft, and carried pity.
"I never thought I'd see the day someone as unkillable as you would end up like this… It's almost painful to watch."
…
Corner of the City…
In a small, decayed house on the outskirts of the city, early sunlight filtered through the cracked window.
Light fell across Lucian's face, giving a faint warmth to his pale skin. A deep scar across his nose, yet his features remained undeniably handsome.
He lay on a giant, old creaking bed. A girl sat at his side?
She stood at 5'3", her figure slender yet curvaceous, strikingly. Her skin was a deep, rich umber, her high cheekbones sculpting her face. Luminous violet eyes studied him in silence. Raven-black hair fell down her back in an intricately braided crown, wrapped with obsidian bands and silver thread.
She wore a long, black coat-dress with high slits, its upper half shaped like a leather corset. Her chest was layered in scaled monster leather, shaped into phoenix-feather patterns. A tattered half-cape clung to her shoulders, clasped by a silver relic in the shape of a weeping eye.
Below, a jagged, asymmetrical skirt blackened chainmail beneath soft, shadow-dyed cloth draped to her knees in the front and ankles in the back. Tall, heeled boots rose beneath it. One arm bore a long, armored sleeve bound by silver rings, the other was sleeveless.
However, what stood out as she stared at him… her wrist was slit, crimson blood slowly dripped into Lucian's mouth. As her foot bounced rhythmically. Nervous?
Lucian… what really happened? I want to believe you. I do. But after what I saw and heard… how can I pretend it wasn't real?
Her gaze wandered his body, pausing on a stitched chain-like scars across his torso.
It hasn't healed… That's not normal. If he got it before leaving, why does it still look fresh? Something's wrong. Very wrong.
Her gaze dropped lower, darted away briefly, before continuing, the moment she was about to she frezze.
She felt a sudden vise like grip clamped around her arm.
Lucian sat up, his other arm crossed instinctively his scarred chest. His eyes were sharp, not just confused… but suspicious, frustrated.
He released her.
Without a word, he swung his legs off the bed and stood. Blinking rapidly, recognition finally sank in.
"What are you doing here?" Why are you here?"
She licked the blood from her wrist and replied dryly, "No greeting? No 'thank you' for sticking my neck out?"
Lucian sighed, his gaze dropping to her wrist. "Sorry. And… thanks, Halcyon."
Her smile was bright, mischievous. But he knew the danger that always lingered just beneath it, no one in their right mind made her angry.
"You're not drinking it," she said, her voice softer now. "Why?"
Lucian remained silent… He moved to his wardrobe, retrieving the clothes she'd neatly hung.
Half-dressed, he paused. Glanced over his shoulder.
"Answer me first… why would you offer your blood?"
She could help, roll her eyes. "Technically, I didn't offer. I gave. There's a difference."
He exhaled deeply.
Long ago, he'd promised never to take from her again. Her blood was too pure, too potent. The first time he tasted it, it burned through him like fire… it left guilt. He remembered the shame. The craving. The look in her eyes afterward.
In his mind, Halcyon suddenly said something that froze him in place.
"You know, I heard something… about a transformation. One that happened right before your betrayal."
His jaw clenched. "Betrayal… whatever I did… or am doing… isn't your concern."
His continued his voice turned cold. "Tell me what you're doing here."
She slowly glanced over him.
What really happened to shake him like this?
"I've been tracking someone," she said. "And I noticed signs. Of someone from our past."
"So I've heard," Lucian muttered.
Halcyon stepped closer, her violet eyes soft… but slicing.
"Really? Then what are you going to do about it?"
"I don't know."
"Well, whatever you decide, it won't make a difference."
She reached out to fix the collar of his shirt… Her fingers hesitated at the edge, as if remembering something that hurt. Still, she adjusted it.
"I was actually shocked to see you with a normal job for once. How'd you manage that?"
Lucian didn't answer.
In the past, a "normal life" was impossible… not with men like Randall around. Even Halcyon never had one. Not after she chose exile over obedience.
What did she see that night that made her question everything she knew about Lucian?
Halcyon shrugged. "I don't know what I'm going to do. But I suggest you…"
Lucian cut her off, locking eyes with her.
"No. Something about this… it feels purposeful."
"Why?" Her voice dropped. "Do you know how dangerous it is to stay? He's furious. Depressed. Angry over your betrayal. He'll throw everything at you."
Lucian gently, but firmly placed his hand on her shoulder. "Then it's time for you to leave... I'll stay."
Halcyon lips formed a bittersweet smile. "You really don't know what you should fear, do you?"
Without warning, she wrapped her arms around him… He stiffened, his eyes darting around.
He didn't return the gesture.
Moment she pulled back, they stood in silence, staring into each others eyes. Before, she turned toward the door, then halted.
There was a time Halcyon would've died for him. Now… she barely trusted him to stand by him.
Would he ever trust anyone enough to reveal his true form… both physically and emotionally?