Sebastian took his mug of coffee from me. He had dark circles under his eyes and ruffled up hair. He drained the coffee in one go.
"That's pretty bad. What did you make it with?" He asked, drained of sleep.
"I used the free coffee and sugar things and the tiny carton of milk in the fridge." I replied, taking the mug from him and putting it on the bench.
He grunted. "That makes sense."
"So how did you sleep last night?" I asked, looking forward to his answer.
"How is your ankle?" He said instead, dodging my question.
I chuckled. "Well, it's all good so far. Hopefully we won't have to do any running today." I rolled it around, feeling no pain.
Seb ran his fingers through his jet black hair, straightening it and pushing it to one side. I tidied up while he got dressed in the tiny bathroom. He got out and I jumped in. I changed from my pyjamas into grey jeans and a blue and white T-shirt. It crossed my mind that we would need to find a place to wash our clothes soon.
I started to think back, to think over what happened yesterday and last night. I never had the chance to process it. After we rented the room, we both collapsed into a dreamless sleep. I woke up a little earlier than Seb, drowsy and slow.
I remembered what he had done with his arms, how he used flames to jump from rooftop to rooftop with me on his back. I was impressed that he had such control over what he did and his application of his magic. Now I was jealous.
I also remembered seeing the silver haired....creature. It had intense hate in its eyes when it spotted Valen, for whatever reason. I had a feeling we would be seeing both of them again.
Kain appeared, after I was fully dressed. He looked a little bored.
"Well, long time no see." I said as I gathered my dirty clothes together.
"It's only been a night." He said, leaning against the tiny sink. I noticed that he had a reflection in the mirror above it. "Besides, there isn't much I can do when your running away. In a fight, call me then."
He stepped aside when I used the sink to brush my teeth.
"What do you know about that silver wolf thing that attacked Valen?" I asked, speaking past the toothpaste.
"Well, I only have a little background knowledge on "supernatural" creatures, but I'm pretty sure that was a werewolf."
I spat into the sink. "A werewolf?"
He shrugged. "That's the closest I have. Usually, they don't look like that. They look like giant wolves. They're incredibly fast and strong, plus, they have wolf senses, so you want them to be on your side in a fight." He explained as I rinsed.
I wiped my mouth. "Do they have a vendetta against all vampires? Or was it just Valen?"
"Well, both groups have been at war for years. A secret war, hidden from those who can't see but plain as day for those who can."
"So that's why he went after Valen and not us." I concluded.
"Exactly."
I walked out the bathroom and started to pack away all my stuff. I had a hard time fitting everything back into my bag but after some wrestling, I managed it. We tidied up the room a bit then left, Kain close behind.
We checked out, paid for our room and left the building. Wondering around town without a purpose was a bit refreshing. We had no where to be so we ended up at a cafe, ordering breakfast. We sat down at a two chair table under an awning out front. I grabbed a menu and started browsing. In the end, I went with the classic bacon and eggs on toast with an apple juice. Kain leant against a wooden pole nearby, looking around. Sebastian went with English muffins and a cheese toastie. It wouldn't fill us up but all of us agreed that we should maintain some degree of normalcy, seeing as how it would be strange seeing one person eat five orders in a row.
Sebastian went in to order and I sat, waiting for him and looking around at the other customers. All of them seemed normal except for the couple sitting in the corner.
They ate normally but the fish woman drank her bottled water with a straw through one of her gills. Her greenish-blue scales shimmered in the early morning sun. Orange sprinkled the tiny brow and cheekbone scales and dyed the end of her tail. She sat with her legs crossed and I realised that she was actually quite pretty.
I couldn't say the same for the man sitting across from her.
A nasty, sharp beak protruded from his head and his beady eyes scanned all around him. His red feathers were the colour of blood and didn't shine as they were supposed to. Feathers adorned his shoulders and slowly gave way to skin down his arms. He wore a sleeveless shirt and trousers. He looked my way and I tore my eyes away, only to noticed a guy, above my age, striding towards me with a purpose. He was skinny, but not deathly so and had shining silver hair.
I was taken aback when he sat down in Sebastian's chair and started talking to me. Kain turned, interested.
"Look, normally, I would do this whole thing where I would let you catch glimpses of me, make you feel intimidated then corner you in a dark alley which, when said out loud, sounds really creepy but since y'know, I'm a nice guy and all, I'm just gonna cut straight to the chase." His tone meant business. He leaned forward and I leant back.
"Do you know that vampire?" He asked really seriously. He had a hint of an accent that I couldn't place.
"What?" I said dumbly, too surprised to say more.
"Do you know the vampire?" He separated his words to make them easier to understand. I recognised his accent to be Australian. "The one from last night, on the roof."
"Uh....um..." It was all happening too fast. "I.....we were running from him..."
I wasn't sure whether to tell the truth but impulse drove me under this sudden pressure. "You attacked him, you were the werewolf right?"
"Half." He said simply.
"What?" I was truly impressing him with my vocabulary.
"I'm only half, on my fathers side." He leant back in the chair.
Kain smirked. "So that's why he looked so weird and incomplete."
The wolf boy looked Kain straight in the eyes. "Shut it, mate."
Both Kain and I dropped out jaws. He looked at me and gestured to Kain. "So how long has he been following you around for?"
"Y-you can see him?!" I stuttered.
"Can no one else see him?" He asked. He was quick to put things together.
"No, it's only been me!" I responded, heart beginning to race. "He appeared once, about a year ago, saving me from Valen and his gang. He came back a few weeks ago with no memory of where he came from or what was happening."
"I'm still here!" He exclaimed, finally getting over his shock of being seen.
"Do you have any idea why you can see him?" I asked, desperate for answers.
The wolfs green eyes grew distant, trying to remember. "Dunno. It could be anything. You never know when it comes to these things." He shook his head and returned his attention to us. "Anyway, I figure you aren't in league with him, so...my names Eli."
He held out his hand and I cautiously shook it.
"Hawk. That's Kain."
"Well, it's nice to meet ya."
Sebastian chose this moment to walk out of the café, carrying our breakfast. He stopped short when he saw Eli sitting in his chair. Recognition flashed in his eyes. "You..."
"It's ok, Seb," I stated quickly, "he's ok, he's not gonna attack or anything. This is Eli."
"Hey." Eli sat there, relaxed and laid back.
"...hi..." Sebastian cautiously put our breakfast on the table and pulled up another chair. "I'm Sebastian."
"Seb for short, got it." Eli smiled. "I understand that you were running away from that vamp last night? Nice trick with the fire, by the way."
"Thanks." Sebastian seemed suspicious of him but didn't say more.
"So," Eli switched his gaze between the three of us, "why was he chasing you?"
"We need to get revenge. His boss, a woman named Leona, killed one of our friends in cold blood." I explained.
"Ah, I've met her before. She's the Valkyrie, isn't she? Got a whole secret organisation going under her watch." Eli could prove to be useful.
"What? Organisation?" I questioned.
"Well, yeah. She's got a whole giant underground lair and stuff. And I mean giant. A lot of people work for her, doing dangerous stuff. She has a lot of power and influence. You've gotta watch out for her group."
"Before we were chased by Valen, we were listening at the window of the place where he was. Some kind of mafia gang occupied the building and Valen was sent there to make a deal." I racked my memory. "I think it was about buying a factory."
"For how much? Do you know what the factory was making?" Eli asked.
"Two million." Sebastian put in. "We don't know what it was making but it must be valuable for it to be worth two million."
"Thanks to the size of her organisation, two mil would be close to nothing for them." He leant forward. "I'm talking about buying stocks of military vehicles, shiploads of ammunition or weapons. And the amount of people she's got working for her isn't a joke. So if her eyes are locked into a small factory, she's got plans."
"Do you think....we could sabotage it?" I wondered aloud, a fantastic idea dawning on me.
"Ooh...you're onto something there!" Eli said, almost cackling with glee. "I'll make a deal with you guys: I'll help you get your revenge, if you can get me close enough to kill that vampire."
I gave a quick glance at Kain and Sebastian. They both seemed to approve, Sebastian less so.
I stuck out my hand to him. "You've got yourself a deal!"
He took it and shook firmly.
