New Blood

🌙 Chapter 2

The next morning came too fast.

Thalric barely slept. His head felt heavy, and his wrist still burned a little where the strange mark had appeared.

He stared at it again under the dull morning light. Nothing. Just skin. Maybe it was a dream… maybe everything was.

He shook the thought away, grabbed his backpack, and headed to school. The air smelled of wet ground after the night rain. The city looked normal again—like nothing strange had ever happened.

But he couldn’t stop thinking about Veluna. The way she’d said his name. The way her eyes had glowed.

---

At school, things felt off.

Students whispered more than usual. Some glanced at him, then looked away fast.

When he sat down, his best friend Kai leaned closer.

“Hey, man. You okay? You look like a ghost.”

Thalric sighed. “Didn’t sleep.”

Kai smirked. “Lemme guess—video games again?”

“Something like that,” Thalric said quietly.

Before Kai could reply, the classroom door opened. Veluna walked in.

This time, she didn’t look at anyone. She just went straight to her seat and stared out the window again.

But Thalric noticed something new. Her eyes weren’t just gray today—they had a faint silver glow, even in daylight.

He tried not to stare, but she suddenly turned her head, and their eyes met.

For a moment, everything went silent. The chatter, the footsteps, the teacher’s voice—it all faded.

Then she smiled. Just a small one. And that strange calm washed over him again.

---

After class, he caught up with her in the hallway.

“Veluna,” he said.

She stopped but didn’t turn. “You shouldn’t talk to me here.”

“Why not?”

“People are watching.”

“I don’t care. I just want answers.”

She finally faced him. Her expression was soft, but her voice was firm.

“You’re changing, Thalric. You can feel it, can’t you?”

He hesitated. “I don’t know what I feel.”

“You will soon.”

“Then tell me what’s going on!” he said, louder than he meant to. A few students turned to stare.

Veluna took a step closer, lowering her voice. “Not here. After school. By the old train tracks.”

Before he could say anything, she walked away.

---

All through the day, Thalric couldn’t focus. His pen kept tapping, his leg kept shaking, and every clock tick felt too slow.

When the final bell rang, he rushed out before Kai could even say goodbye.

The old train tracks lay behind a small hill near the city’s edge, half-buried under weeds and rust. The sun was already sinking when he arrived.

Veluna was waiting, sitting on one of the broken rails, her coat fluttering in the wind.

“You came,” she said softly.

“You said you’d explain,” he replied.

She stood, her eyes serious now. “The mark on your wrist—did you see it again?”

He nodded slowly. “Only once. At night.”

“That’s when it begins,” she murmured. “Your blood is waking up. You’re connected to the Night Fall.”

“The what?”

“The Night Fall,” she repeated. “It’s not a curse… not really. It’s something old. It’s what lives under the moon.”

Thalric frowned. “You’re not making sense.”

Veluna looked at him sadly. “You will understand when it happens again. But listen carefully—when the moon calls you, don’t fight it.”

He took a step closer. “Why me? Why any of this?”

She opened her mouth to answer—but then froze. Her head turned sharply toward the trees.

“What is it?” he whispered.

Veluna’s eyes glowed faintly. “We’re being watched.”

A low growl echoed from the shadows. Then another.

Something moved between the trees—dark, fast, and heavy.

Veluna grabbed his arm. “Run!”

They sprinted down the tracks as the growls grew louder. The air felt thick, the sound of claws scraping against metal behind them.

Thalric’s heart pounded hard, but something else pulsed inside him too—a strange rush, wild and hot. His senses sharpened. The air, the smell, the movement—it all became clearer.

They reached an old tunnel. Veluna pulled him inside and pressed a finger to her lips.

The growling stopped. For a moment, there was silence.

Then, a loud crash. Something hit the wall outside, hard enough to shake dust from the ceiling.

Thalric grabbed a metal rod lying nearby. His hands trembled, but he lifted it anyway.

Veluna whispered, “Don’t.”

“I’m not hiding forever.”

The thing outside snarled again—and suddenly, Thalric’s wrist burned. His body tensed.

The same mark glowed again, brighter this time. He gasped. His eyes flashed gold.

Veluna’s voice trembled. “It’s happening…”

The growl came again, closer—then a shape lunged through the tunnel entrance.

Thalric swung the rod instinctively. The sound of metal hitting flesh echoed.

The creature staggered back, but before he could see it clearly, it vanished into the darkness.