Something Immortal

05: The Noblest of Race

The one who spoke seemed younger, with red lips and a prominent nose. The other one was sitting on the wider railing of the stair in a relaxed manner, entertained by his reaction. Their dark hair compliments their sallow skin, and it was heavily emphasized by their all-black, lace-collared shirts. Som described them as very chic in a cold, dark, medieval sort of way.

However, what captured his attention wasn't their good looks or their gothic fashion. But their eyes. Their eyes were glowing electric blue. Similar to that bat he saw yesterday perched on the tree in front of his room.

All races of the legion, except the druids, have two kinds of forms. Their physical form and their ancestral form or also known as their original form. To tame their hidden power, they usually appear in their physical form, but that doesn't mean that they don't possess a bit of the physical attributes of their ancestral form. A good example of this was Phet, who couldn't hide his snake tail and scales. Although both forms can be coined as "original" in a sense, it was still far from being less terrifying.

Yet no matter how perfectly these other races hid their ancestral forms, there was one part of their body that was mentioned in the story that helps one recognize them—their eyes. Neither one of these sacred beasts has ever been successful in hiding the color and physical aspect of their eyes. Just one glance at this part, Som could tell what they were. And if his hunch was correct, and he suspects it was, these two young gentlemen in front of him belong to the Strigoi race.

Not much was known about the Strigoi except that they devour blood. Som read from somewhere their diet considerably changed when they decided to sign the Peace Treaty, but not everything about them was mentioned. One thing Som was certain of was that their threat level placed them as highly dangerous.

Once more, Som looked at their faces which were almost identical, and he could tell they were indeed related. They even raised their brows at the same time when he didn't respond to their question right away.

"I'm not lost," Som quickly denied. There was no way he was telling these strangers that he was lost. First of all, it was embarrassing, and second, he was scared! Darren made it clear that Strigoi were trickster, and their mischief could often result in slaughter depending on their mood.

"Yes, you are. You kept on checking the map on your hand, and you're also looking vexed," the same person who spoke accused him while his companion kept on smirking.

Som was annoyed. Why ask if you know the answer yourself? He told himself but didn't voice this out. "It's fine," he uttered coldly.

"I can show you the way," the young man offered.

But this unsettled Som's nerves even more. Come to think of it, do they know him? Or do they think he was harmless? As though he heard what Som was thinking, the man spoke again using the same soft tone as though he was flirting.

"You're a druid, aren't you?"

"How can you tell?"

"I can smell," he smiled slightly, showing his fangs. "Or better yet, we can see. Let's start, strawberry copper hair with hazel autumn eyes, and you're just so..." he stopped, and his eyes twinkled as he added, "Well, it's our first time meeting one."

"It's—"

"It's your first time meeting a Strigoi too?"

That was exactly what was on Som's mind! It made him wonder if Strigoi could read minds. Well, it might be the expected response, but Som was still aggravated. "Uhm, well, can you tell me where to go? We need to be at the opening ceremony at 7 AM sharp. Right?"

The two exchanged looks, but they lacked so much-needed facial expressions that Som couldn't even hazard a guess on what they were thinking. Also, it was only for a few seconds, and they glanced back at him wearing those mysterious smiles.