A Loyal Companion
FOUR: Connection

Morning light sneaked through the edges of the sapphire curtain in my room. I could feel the warmth across my face. I opened my eyes and saw that familiar hand again next to my face. I looked up and found a man with the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen, golden eyes that matched his hair, a smile that brought peace onto me, lips dying to be kissed. I took his hand and was drawn into a kiss. At the touch of his lips on mine, every molecule in my body stirred to life, I felt a rush of warmth washed over me, my body overflowed with living energy, it almost felt like I had been asleep all these times and was awaken at that moment. His hair touched my cheeks, smooth as a feather, his lips were sweet, and his strong arms around me were comforting. He broke away from the kiss and planted another on my chest. The kiss left a mark, and it started to burn my skin. It hurt so much that I started screaming and trying to reach for something to hold on to. But his hands were pinning my wrists down to the bed, he leaned to my ears and whispered to me.

“Come to me”

I woke up screaming once again like any other night I had nightmares. My chest was still burning. I looked down and there I saw the mark in a shape of a teardrop, it was red, and planted beneath the skin.

Gin broke into my room, ran across the room headed straight to my bed. Gin’s hands found mine and held me, letting me know that he was there, that it was all just a nightmare.

The burning on my chest started to fade away, and I started to calm down.

“He was here” I managed to say.

“Your Crimson Tears…” I followed Gin's gaze to Crimson Tears. It was leaning by my bed as I left it, only that it was crying blood.

I let go of myself from him, and grabbed the sword. I forgot all about the pain on my chest. I unsheathed Crimson Tears and saw that blood was streaming out from the hilt before I looked at Gin, full of questions.

“It has never done that before, I take it”

I shook my head. I was speechless.

A minute later the pain on my chest was completely gone, and Crimson Tears stopped crying blood.

Orange clouds decorated the sky as I walked back to the Tarkas from my long bush walk. The afternoon went without many words being said. I was too tired to think, and fortunately no one asked many questions. Being what we were, we learned that there were many things that we would not understand in first glance, Gin had kept a cool head and assured me that in time, I’d find out what my dreams meant.

My mind went back to the topic of Roan that Payne brought up last night. Roan and I had a history. It was complicated, but all relationships were in a way. We weren’t meant for each other and we both knew it, although he had the more difficult time coming to terms with it. Roan was looking for a mate, I was still waiting the one person who was meant to be my other half to show up. Separating from him was tough, but it had to be done. I had not seen him for three years then, keeping my distance as far away as possible from the pack, hoping that it would help him heal.

A falcon flew above my head, headed for Tarkas, its wings were widely spread, riding the Northerlies. It started descending as it reached the clearing ahead of me. It landed on its feet, a pair of human feet, and started to shed its feather, slowly taking a human form. I walked faster towards the clearing, approaching the creature. Its hair started to grow as it was forming the shape of a human, a long, wavy, thick fiery red hair. He stood proud as the glimmering sun set colors complimented the perfect curve of his muscles, while the green grass made his red hair shone brighter than it already had. The creature turned around and showed his beautiful face to me. A smile curled on his lips, his red eyes glinted. I thought for a second that I was seeing flame dancing in his eyes, but realized that it was the way his eyes were, it goes with his name and his fire elemental nature.

“Aidan… good to see you here” I approached him.

“Good to be here” his deep voice was as beautiful as the looks. He walked towards me, still nude, not that any of us cared. Supers, in particular shapeshifters, became comfortable with nudity very quickly in our early years.

I welcomed him with a tight hug. Our history stretched back to my younger days. Back then I hadn’t met Gin and known about the safe house, I was alone and aware of other beings but had not made friends with them. I was a lone warrior for a long time, until I met Aidan during a hunt. In the war it was easy to find a prey, as I would settle for any offenders. I happened to kill a soldier who was harassing Aidan. At first I thought he was just another innocent human being about to be killed by the soldier, but I found out that he was badly hurt and was in the middle of his human and bird form. He had lost a battle with a sorcerer and hadn’t had the time to fully change back to human form when the soldier came and attack him. I saw the pair of wings that sprouted from his back, mangled in a bloody mess. At that time Aidan hadn’t learnt how to control his fire starter side of him in an inhuman form. It took my brain an extra split second to realize he was another being like me before I went to help him to safety. After a few live saving incidents, we finally fully trust one another and since then we had been very good friends, and had been lovers. If what I had with Roan was complicated, then what I had with Aidan was anything but.

Our hug tightened and led into a fierce kiss. I cared for him, and I loved him, he was the oldest and closest friend I had. We had our time together and we cherished one another, we looked out for each other and I trusted him with my life as he trusted me. It made this eternal life easier to know that our feelings were mutual. It had been almost fifteen years since the last time I saw him. I missed him. We would share our lives together for quite a long period of time before we were separated again, it kept going this way and I think it worked. Both of us had things we would like to be doing on our own time, and when time was right, one of us would go to visit.

He broke from the kiss and looked at me with his fiery eyes. He gave a joyful laugh. I laughed with him, we were happy to be in each other’s arms again, to kiss again, and simply to be there side by side. A kiss was planted at my forehead followed by another tight hug.

“I’ve missed you”

“I’ve missed you too… It has been so long”

“Too long” he smiled again and offered his arm, which I took. I looped my arm around his and walked back towards the mansion.

“It has been confirmed that the portal leads to the underworld” I could see the terror across Nasya’s eyes as she said it.

“How could it be opened?” Yolen’s voice held no playful tone like usual.

“We still have no further confirmation on how the portal came into being, but the dark army is on the move as we speak”

“What happened?” I could catch a hint of worry from Gin’s voice.

“Tristan sensed movements from deep within, Cael is holding the fort and now is waiting for re-enforcements. Our warriors are on their way to Pyrii right now through underground passage”

“I saw them on my way in, they’d make it to Pyrii before sunrise” Aidan must have seen them while the army crossed the ocean. The underground passage was a safe route for any Supers to travel, especially for those who were sensitive to technologies as old magic protect the passage, but it didn’t run across the ocean, which would force them to find other means to travel on water.

I will send Roan and the pack” Payne rose as he spoke.

“I will send words through the community. You all know what to do. I will see you in Pyrii by nightfall tomorrow”

With that, the leaders rose and left the room, leaving Gin, Aidan, Teal, and I in silence.

“You will not come with us this time, Teal” Gin broke the silence and placed a hand on the young man’s shoulder. Teal rose to protest, but I held him. I knew Gin meant well.

“He’s right, Teal, you’d need to stay” I said as I stroke the back of his hand.

“You know I am capable to fight”

“That’s why we need you to stay here”

He didn’t normally mind staying out of missions, but this was something big, he would want to come. I knew his urge to prove that he was a true werewolf, and that chance might just come in this opportunity, but he knew that his duty lied at Tarkas if Gin, for some unforeseen circumstances failed to return, he’d take Gin’s duty at Tarkas temporarily until a successor was appointed.

I held his hands in mine and looked him in the eye.

“You know you are a true werewolf, better than anyone else. Payne may not see that, but I see that, Gin sees that”

“I see that too” Aidan added.

“You’re saying this as if you are not coming back”

“Because it might just happen that way”

Silence once again crept into the room as Gin said his words. It was bitter, but it was the truth. Gin didn’t want to give Teal false hope.

“Fine” he rose from his seat.

“I will stay… but I will not take your place even just temporarily if you don’t try your hardest to keep on living” it wasn’t anger that showed in the young man’s eyes, it was love. He loved Gin as a father, a friend, and a mentor. Gin had given him a new life after the one he was familiar with was taken away from him, he considered Gin as “home”.

Gin moved closer to him and patted him on his shoulder.

“I have tried my hardest to keep on living until today. Tomorrow and any other day would be no different. For you, if there is still a drop of life in me, I will not let them take me”

His past battles hadn’t kill him, they made him a stronger, better man, but he also realized how much pain he would cause to people whom he left behind should he fail to return, the feeling of being left behind was too familiar to him, he didn’t want anyone to have to go through the pain. Teal was the closest he could get to a son, he had lost his wife and unborn child in the early age of his life and swore to never again raise a family as it hurt too much to lose another. When I became a part of his family, but he knew that one day I would go and serve the person I was meant to serve. I was simply a good friend, his rock, and a shoulder to cry on. Being a pair of old souls, we shared almost the same trip down the memory lane, and that was what made our relationship special.

Teal gave him a firm hug, before turning to me and gave me one.

“Be good while we’re away… I’d expect to see the house in a presentable condition when we get back”

He smiled at Gin and nodded.

“Sure thing”

That night I found Gin once again at the presence of his wife’s statue. He took her stone cold hand in his and placed his cheek there, as if asking for comfort. No words were spoken. I turned back towards my room to give him privacy. It broke my heart to see someone longing for his long lost love. Gin knew he had to let go, and he had, why he still grieved for his late wife was because he blamed himself for it, and simply, he missed her. I knew how it felt, for I missed my family too, missed the loving embrace of my mother, the wisdom of my father, the warmth of a family. The sight of Gin at his wife’s statue summoned my longing to once again belong to a family, blood tied family.

I had never been married nor bore any children. The bloodline of my family died when I was 127 years old, when Brim, the last of our mortal bloodline was unable to have children. When Brim died, my whole family died with him. I was the only one left, the only immortal in my family throughout the ages. I had not made my existence known to my extended family, but I watched them from afar, a part of me wanted to belong to my family, but the other part didn’t want to lose another. Therefore I settled with just staying close to them without letting them know I even existed. I had found my own family at Tarkas, but I couldn’t simply forget where I came from, and it was what made Gin came to his wife’s statue every night, he was simply reminding himself how he became who he was.

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