I never liked death. Or killings, for a matter of fact. Death is an irreversible harm. Having grown up without a father, I know that pain. The worst thing about his death is that it remains a mystery, even to this day. According to the cops, he died by some gang members, but they never found the culprit or any possible motivation. When the news broke, Kana cried every single day for months straight. But I don’t remember seeing mom cry. She worked a lot more now than she did back then, but this was the longest she remained home. She mourned his death just like the rest of us, but the feeling I felt most from her was regret.

Chapter 4

Introduction and Trepidations

Haru tightly gripped the wire fence and heaved his weak and heavy body to its feet. He began to tremble again, but this time it was from fear. After a deep breath, Haru glanced back at the man, who returned the grin onto his face, awaiting a response from the boy.

“Wh-who are y-you?” Haru said as his body trembled.

The man chuckled as if he loved hearing the question.

“The name’s Ryu! It’s good to meet ya! Well, at least this time, it’s official!”

Haru couldn’t process the many emotions he was feeling at the time. He didn’t understand why this stranger was overly excited to meet him, but that was the least of his worries. He knew this man had the answers he needed, but Haru had to fight through his raging emotions to get what he wanted.

“What is happening?” Haru questioned. “Why did these people attack me?”

Haru thought it was a stupid question. They did mention that they had a job to kill him, but how did Haru expect this stranger to know why these gang members attacked him?

“Oh! I was the one who hired them!” Ryu said with a chuckle.

“Wha-” Haru choked on his words.

“Of course! How else could I have tested your strength? I made you into a Vampire, after all!”

It seemed that with everything Ryu said, one question would be answered, and another would be raised.

“Made me? What are you talking about?”

“What? You don’t remember?” Ryu asked, knowing Haru didn’t have an answer. “I saved your life from the Werewolf that almost killed you!”

What? Werewolf?

Haru almost wanted to smack himself awake from this dream, but he knew it wasn’t one. Could this possibly be a joke? Not a chance, the gang members lying in blood were indeed dead. If it was a prank, this would have been the best prank ever pulled. But as unsure as Haru was, he wasn’t stupid. He knew damn well that his life had drastically changed. But for better or worse, he didn’t know.

A million questions ran through the boy's mind, but before he could get one out, Ryu continued with his speech.

“You were fleeing from that mongrel through the city. When I finally caught up to you, its teeth were dug into your arm. I got in a good smack into the mutt before it ran off yelping! I could have chased it, but you were dying, so I turned you into a Vampire right on the spot!”

“Vampire?” Haru choked out. “I’m …. A vampire?”

“You must have felt it, right? The hunger for human blood. The tremors. The pale, itchy skin. The lightheadedness. And that insatiable hunger. You were on the verge of turning into a real monster. At least until you took a bite out of those gang members.”

Haru realized the implications of what the man had just said. He killed those gang members on instinct, all just to satisfy his appetite for blood. He had no control over himself and showed no remorse. But what if Haru decided to return home instead? He worried that his sister might have been the victim instead. It was a sobering thought.

“Do …..” Haru took a deep breath so he could force out his question through his tears. “Do Werewolves have red eyes?”

“Yes, they do!” Ryu gleefully responded. “So you do remember something. Whenever a human turns into a Vampire, they will lose some of their memories. I guess it happened to you too.”

The man jumped down from the tall wire fence and landed comfortably on his feet. It surprised Haru to see this stranger land from such a height with ease. It was impressive, almost distracting Haru from all the worrying thoughts in his head.

“You know…” Ryu said as he swaggered towards Haru, sticking his finger in the boy's face. “You were so close to death. It would help to be just a little bit grateful to me!”

Haru didn’t know what to say. He felt grateful for his life being saved but wasn’t much in the mood to get on his knees to kiss his feet. Haru had questions, and Ryu had answers.

“So ….” Haru asked, now feeling calmer. “What exactly happened at the alleyway? Cops are everywhere!”

“Isn’t it obvious? The Werewolf massacred everybody there! You were the only survivor!”

“What?!” Haru burst out suddenly, not knowing how to properly handle the news. “Why did it spare me?”

“Spare you? Hardly,” Ryu responded. “It sliced up your arm pretty badly. Believe it or not, Werewolves have terrible night vision. It probably tracked you on the trail of blood you left”

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

It was hard not to think about the lives lost. Haru’s chest tightened as he thought about it, or at least what might have happened. He still didn’t have any memories of the event, but he still felt a sense of survivor's guilt. How cruel. It must have been terrifying to die to such a monster that nobody knew existed.

But how does nobody know about this? There is nothing about it in the news. How does something like a Werewolf remain a secret from the public?

“If you have any questions, you can ask them now.” Ryu proclaimed. “But! You can ask me only three questions. I’m a busy man, and I got things to do. So, choose wisely.”

Haru had so many things to ask; there was no way he could ask only three. But he closed his eyes and pondered what could provide him with the most helpful information. He remembered his comics. All the Vampires shared the same weakness.

“Are ….. Are Vampires weak to the sunlight?” Haru asked.

Ryu quickly went in for a smack on Haru’s head.

“WHAT A STUPID QUESTION! WE DON’T START MELTING IN THE SUN!”

Haru whimpered from his sore skull.

“And we don’t sparkle either! I don’t know what idiot came up with that stupid idea!”

Ryu let out a long sigh in an attempt to calm himself.

“You should know. You were out all day yesterday,” Ryu said. “Just forget everything you see in those books and movies. Real Vampires are nothing like that, aight! That was question one, by the way. You have two more.”

It was a silly question, and Haru knew it. So many questions roamed around Haru's mind, and he knew he shouldn’t waste this opportunity. He looked at the smug Vampire, who was leaning back on the wire fence. He didn’t seem like much, but Ryu knew much more than Haru had previously imagined.

“I went to the alleyway where the Werewolf attacked last night,” Haru said. “There were these people in black suits. Who were—”

“Don’t know,” Ryu interrupted. “Next question.”

“Wha- Hey! Don’t shrug me off! You said you would answer my questions!”

“No, I didn’t!” Ryu responded with an arrogant chuckle. “I said you can ask your questions. Said nothing about answering them!”

Haru let out a frustrated sigh before coming up with another question.

“So,” Haru said, hesitating, unsure if Ryu would even answer the question. “There are Vampires and Werewolves. Are there other creatures besides those two?”

Ryu let out his familiar smirk. “Now, that's a good question!”

……………………

There was a long silence.

Is he not going to answer again?! What an asshole!

“I don’t even know where to begin!” Ryu said, interrupting the silence. “There are so many different Supernaturals. I can name a few. Gargoyles, Gogmagmogs, Spirits, Banshees, Nykurs, Zombies, Mimics, Wendigos, Angels, and…. Well, so much more, that's just a few!”

Ryu reached out and tightly grabbed Haru’s shoulders, forcing him to give Ryu his full attention.

“You want to see this Werewolf? Good news! Because you are going to help me kill it ….. tonight! I have an idea of where he is hiding!”

Haru shuttered at the very thought of hunting down a Werewolf. He read the comics, and almost all of them showcased a Werewolf as a frightening monster with powerful jaws and incredible bloodlust. But another thought convinced him that maybe it wasn’t as bad as he feared. There were a few misconceptions about Vampires, after all. And Ryu didn’t seem worried, so everything should be fine, right?

“Hey!” Ryu exclaimed. “Don’t give me that look. Think about it like this. You will be avenging those people it killed. And it will surely kill more innocent people in the future. You’ll be a hero!”

Haru’s worried face lit up. He liked the sound of that. Maybe being a Vampire wouldn’t be a bad thing.

“Let’s meet here at eight on the dot! I’ve gotta run, so I’ll see you tonight!”

The gleeful Vampire turned around to face the fence and quickly crouched down before launching himself upward, hoisting himself over the fence and landing smoothly on the parking lot on the other side. The stunned Haru could only watch, astonished at his superb maneuverability. Ryu turned and faced Haru for one final message.

“Don’t worry about these dead guys, aight! And also, don’t tell anybody anything!”

He quickly raced off before Haru had a chance to respond. This would be the first time Haru met someone whose confidence was so contagious that he managed to catch some himself. His heart was beating, not from panic or fear but from excitement. There was something about hunting down a Werewolf that thrilled him. It didn’t feel natural; however, it almost felt like instinct.

“Tonight?” Haru asked himself as he gazed at the rising sun, finally lifting over the skyline in the distance. “Shit! I have school today!”

Haru saw that the bloodstains on his clothes might be somewhat jarring if he was to walk the streets of Tokyo, so he quickly changed and turned his clothing inside out. He felt stupid, but it beat looking like a cold-blooded murderer.

But as Haru gathered himself to leave, he almost tripped on one of the corpses of the gang member he killed last night.

He was a cold-blooded murderer.

He observed their wounds more carefully and almost gagged at the grotesque sight. But it struck him. What if he was to become hungry again? Would he put the lives of the people around him in danger? Could he control himself? He felt fine at the moment, but what if that changed?

As he headed back home, he stared back at the corpses behind him, wanting nothing more than to forget the vile actions he had committed. It was easy to forget. It was in self-defense, after all. It wasn’t his fault they died; they shouldn’t have attacked him.

However, he came to a horrifying realization. So terrifying, it sent shivers down his spine. So frightening he began to get goosebumps all over his body. He slowly turned around to observe the top of the wire fence, the same spot Ryu was sitting on when Haru first saw him.

“Wait……. was he just watching me……the entire night? What a weirdo!”

*****

Haru quickly returned home to put on a new pair of clothes and wash up his face. After rushing to the front door, he noticed that Kana’s shoes were laying by the front door.

He changed his course. Haru quietly but hastily approached his sister’s room to open her door ajar. She was still home, dormant in her cozy pink bed, surrounded by the cleanliness of her room and her messy study desk. He creaks the door slightly more open to awaken his slumbering sister. But quickly changed his mind and closed it behind him. He returned to his hasty routine and rushed out the door for school.