He was fully expecting to find the laboratory empty on that day and so close to lunch hour, but unfortunately for him, there were two people in the room. Luckily, the people in question were Nik and Jabari, who seemed to be deep in a study session, the latter tutoring the boy about to sit the second exam.
“You have to think beyond the cell. Remember the components, and you’ll find the answer.”
“Biology?”
He pulled his black leather gloves further up his hands, not wanting to risk them seeing anything, but he didn’t keep the gesture subtle. He knew the two weren’t the nosy type, unlike others from their friend group.
“Yes. I am still struggling with some things. But if you need the lab Jabari and I can move somewhere else.”
“I can wait. I suppose you’re going to get lunch soon anyway.” He walked around the desks, checking to see if he’d have all the tools necessary. Seemed like it. “Do you perhaps need my help?”
“Oh, no need,” chuckled Nik. “Jabari is a pretty great tutor.”
“I’m decent,” replied the boy, even though Hendrick suspected differently. He knew the freshman was brilliant in all subjects. “I still think Svea would have been a better option as a biology tutor.”
The look Jabari gave Nik was full of meaning. The latter’s blush was also telling. Hendrick however had other priorities that did not involve high school crushes, so he let the two have their silent talk.
“Plants are her expertise,” defended Nik eventually. “I need help with molecular biology, which you shine at. I still remember when you presented in class your theory about reproductive cloning. It was truly impressive.”
“Yeah, well, it’s a hobby of mine.”
Interesting as the discussion was, the boys were interrupted when the lunch bell rang.
“You’re not coming?” Jabari asked him as both he and Nik gathered their stuff.
“No, I’ll be working on my own personal hobby,” said Hendrick with a wink. He almost thought they’d ask, but they smiled and gathered their stuff. He’d tell them when he was ready. Which gave him an idea.
Before the two got out the door, he suggested a midnight revising session/get-together with all seven of them, and asked them to tell the others. He figured by then he would be able to reveal his true face, the one he’s been wearing for centuries now. Which would then make it easier to clarify that incident between him and Shiro, or ask Svea if she is that same girl he met ages ago, or even maybe be free to bother with his own high school crushes.
***
Once upon a time, there was a young king. Because he was put on the throne from a young age, his relatives sought to steal it from him, so the boy was brought to a dark tower along with his brother, waiting for their end. Just when the knights were sent for them under the new king’s command, a man in a black cloak, with his face hidden except for the unnerving glow of his sapphire eyes, came to his rescue. He could not save the youngest of the brothers, or maybe had no interest in him, but he took the older to his lair in the heart if the forest. The cloaked man, once a king himself, taught the boy the ways of witchcraft. It was just the two of them, the master and the apprentice, until the day the boy finally became of age and decided to return to the palace and seek revenge.
---
“So what happened then?”
“How is that the first question you’re asking and not ‘Hendrick, where the heck are you’?”
“Or better yet, why are you hiding?”
“Clearly, he’s trying to set up the mood for his story.”
“But I thought this was a study session?”
“That’s what he told me and Nik but…wait a minute. Black cloak and glowing blue eyes…witchcraft… Hendrick, if this is your story, if you are the young king, then that man…he was a lich.”
“You are correct. And I became one as well.”
Hendrick finally stepped out from behind the bookshelves. The library was veiled in darkness at that hour, except for the bright moon glowing outside and the few light fixtures on the walls giving out only a dim orange glow.
The six students were at a round table in the center, their heads turned towards the sound of his voice. With his black cloak on, the bright blue eyes were the first thing they must have finally noticed. He approached the table with silent footsteps, listening to their gasps of awe. He removed the hood to let them marvel at his pale thin skin as it was stretched on his cranium.
“Smoking was a temporary illusion. It’s a potion I created, but all this time I’ve been looking for something more permanent. Something that will allow me to keep my powers, but make me look…normal. I finally found it. This is my last night as a monster.”
“But you aren’t a monster,” said Iv.
“I’m not a knight in shining armor either.”
“But you could be,” replied Shiro. “We’ll show you.”
If you’re like me, then let us show our powers proudly, whispered Shiro in his mind. Let’s play a game.
***
Players: Hendrik – knight, Nik and Jabari – soldiers, Svea and Jacy – henchmen, Iv – princess, Shiro – villain
Mission: The knight, backed up by his soldiers, has to make it to the tower to save the princess guarded by the villain. His path will be blocked by the villain’s defenders. Once he makes it through them, he must have the final confrontation with the villain before he can rescue the princess.
***
The whole school was asleep, but just for extra protection, Hendrick cast an invisible dome over their playing field, which extended all the way to the guard tower – usually just part of the décor, now adequately used to keep the princess “caged”. Nik and Jabari besides him were equipped with tennis rackets from the gym, while Jacy and Svea chose to unofficially borrow the golf cart the staff sometimes used to go around. Jacy was the appointed driver, with Svea happily holding a blaster to shoot the tennis balls. Once they were all set, he gave the signal. Let the games begin.
Running towards the tower, Hendrick led the way, Nik on his right side, Jabari on his left, close behind him. They were using their rackets to parry the balls coming at them, while he was creating blue energy fields as defense. As soon as Svea ran out of balls to shoot, he made the vehicle slow down, Nik and Jabari catching up to it and jumping in, confiscating Svea’s weapon and turning the wheel, so that they were now going straight for the tower. Once Jabari took control of the wheel and hit the brakes, Hendrick climbed on its roof. From there, summoning more of his magic, he flew up to the window of the tower, about 20 m from the ground, but was soon met with Shiro blocking his way.
“Not so fast.”
“I didn’t know you could fly.”
“Well, neither of us really gave a comprehensive list of what our skill sets include.”
“Which of those skills are you going to use to fight me then?”
Hendrick saw Shiro’s eyes light up in response and knew to expect a similar energy field display to what he himself can produce. So when the hit came, he parried it with his own. The light Shiro was emanating was a blinding golden white, making it look as if dawn was just breaking. From the ground, it must have been a real spectacle, blue and gold mingling, a fight between night and day.
“Are they enjoying the show?”, Hendrick asked when he sensed neither of them would give up. And why would they? Game aside, they were eye to eye, their energies mingling in a display of colors for all to see. It was both intimate and thrilling.
Shiro briefly looked down at their spectators, breaking the eye contact despite the fact that he could probably hear them cheering even from that distance, and in that second Hendrick doubled his efforts, making Shiro loose his stability and fall. He had no qualms about him making it safe, so he quickly went through the window where Iv was waiting.
Before he could even take in his surroundings, a sword was lifted to his chin. The cold metal on his skin awoke him from the trance of the battle. He now stood face to face with the girl who looked like she came out of a Renaissance portrait. She was clad in a scarlet royal gown, hair let loose, arm firmly extended in a position that betrayed familiarity with the sword. The room was empty and only the fire of the torches up on the stone walls – where did that come from? – cast an ambient glow on the scene.
“That is not the welcome I had expected,” he finally spoke.
“Good. Because in this game, the princess doesn’t know if she wants to leave or stay.”
“She should make up her mind then.”
“Why should she?”
The voice that spoke was unmistakably Shiro’s. As to how he sneaked in behind Iv, who still hadn’t lowered her sword, he made no attempt to figure out. Each new power that he revealed to them was a pleasant surprise that he’d much rather discover in action than spoil.
“Why couldn’t she stay, and the hero, as a reward, join her and the villain?”
Shiro gently lowered Iv’s arm and brought both of them closer to Hendrick. He was right. Why couldn’t they?
***
In the narrow space between the bed and the wardrobe, Hendrick managed to fit the desk on which he was now lying. He could have stayed on his bed, but this, lying on a cold hard surface, reminded him of the wooden table on which he first completed his transformation. A few key differences however made him keenly aware that all of that was in the past, centuries ago.
First: the blue lights in the bedroom he brought in to decorate since his first year. Back then, he had the light of the sun peaking in from the window of the cottage.
Second: he now had witnesses. During his first transformation, he was alone, his mentor out of the picture at that point in time. Iv and Shiro were in the same room as him, and he couldn’t help but be aware of their reactions at all time.
The potion took time before it came into effect, therefore he had to be in his lich version. His face was no longer covered by the hood of his favorite black robe, but visible, out in the open for their judgement. Shiro lingered by the entrance – either because he was off-put by the sight or just merely hesitant, Hendrick didn’t know, while Iv was cautiously taking small steps in the cramped bedroom towards him.
She looked as if she wanted to touch, to feel the unique texture of that alien layer of skin that Hendrick has time and again scratched out of frustration, or, less often, marveled at in the mirror when he felt particularly powerful. He turned his glowing eyes towards her and gave a slight nod. She gently brought her fingers to his check, the touch barely there, like a feather, but he felt it run through his whole body. He imagined it helped speed up the process. If that didn’t, then what she did next surely must have.
She leaned over him, and touched her lips to his forehead. Instinctively, they immediately turned their heads towards Shiro, who was looking intently at them from that same spot. His face gave nothing away, neither did Iv’s and certainly not his. But they understood. All he hoped was that once he opened his eyes again, he would see his human face reflected in theirs.
Comments (0)
See all