They've both been hungry for a very long time. It's too bad their hungers aren't exactly the same.. and neither were their species.
Elias once had a friend. A best friend at that. Unfortunately, Elias's friend disappeared in his 2nd year of middle s...
"What do you know about the Krasnyy's?" Auntie Mary asked. I noticed that whenever she said "krasnyy" she pronounced it with. Russian accent. I was assuming it was a Russian word. I hadn't heard it before and it sounded foreign on my tongue.
"Well.. I know a little bit. S-someone on the internet told me." I confessed, nervously playing with my hands.
"Told you?"
"Y-yeah. I asked people on social media what this mark meant.." I held up my wrist as an example.
Silence etched the room and Auntie Mary stared at me blankly. I glanced over at Kaiden who had a stupid smirk on his face and was shaking his head. Did I do something wrong? And what was up with Kaiden? Why was he laughing? I didn't even know he could laugh until now.
Auntie Mary simply had a blank look on her face. I knew that wasn't good.
"Elias you are so fucking dumb." Kaiden mused, smirking at me.
"W-what?!" How could he call me that?
"Kaiden, you shouldn't be laughing." Auntie Mary cut in, giving him a stern look. Her voice left no room for argument. "You should know that this conversation isn't a joke and may just be what's deciding your future." Her eyes narrowed and she clicked her tongue at Kaiden, letting out a soft sigh.
Deciding his future?
I didn't know what was going on anymore. I didn't recognize this house and I didn't recognize the words they were spitting. They mentioned the Krasnyy's a couple of times and Auntie Mary had mentioned the "claim." Was what that person on the internet told me true? I wasn't sure, but I knew that whatever was going on was important. It left an uneasy feeling in my chest and guessing what was currently happening didn't make it any better.
"Please continue with what you were going to say, Elias." Auntie Mary said, giving me a small, guilty smile. I tried to return it but my nervousness got the best of me. I could only nod.
"Well.. uh I asked people about the mark on my wrist and someone responded. T-they said it was a claim and that it was made by a Krasnyy. They had also said that the "claim" would hurt more if I didn't find whoever made it. B-but other than that, they also told me to never post the mark again." I hesitated a couple of times, pausing or stuttering. How embarrassing could I be?
Mary nodded, as if taking this all in.
"Right." she said. "That's the basics. From your face, I can tell you didn't believe a single thing that person told you, right?"
I nodded.
"Well, it is quite true Elias. Krasnyy's are considered a different species from Humans. They— no we are genetically different from Humans. We've existed as long as humans, but evolved in a different way. The word "Krasnyy" means Red in English. The word developed in Russia because that's where the first Krasnyy's were documented and seen." Auntie Mary paused for a second to let me take it all in before she continued. "Krasnyy's fed off of human blood, partly because we needed something to supply our life and partly because our bodies couldn't digest what was needed for survival." Her voice didn't waver and she had a look of complete seriousness.
I could tell she was talking about herself. "We" and "our" clearly showed that she was a Krasnyy too.
It was like when James and Kuro confronted me about the "claim." Was all of this real the whole time? Auntie Mary's story didn't seem fake and honestly, I could see something like the Krasnyy's to be real. I just couldn't grasp whatever this claim was. But Auntie Mary didn't give me any time to think, simply continuing on.
"Not much blood is needed for survival, but there are periods of time where a Krasnyy needs much more blood than usual and when they are.. a little more violent. Anyway, that's not important to you. What is important is that mark on your wrist." Auntie Mary said, pointing at my covered wrist.
I glanced down at it and slightly pulled up my sleeve. The mark hadn't change all that much. Sure, it had gotten more visible but it was a little faded. It didn't cause me much pain anymore, at least when I was around Kaiden.
"By now im sure you've already experienced a bit of pain from the mark." Auntie Mary said. She looked at me to confirm if it was true or not.
"Y-yeah.." I mumbled, but loud enough for the both of them to hear. From the corner of my eye, I could see something flash on Kaiden face. Maybe it was a wince, but I wasn't sure. Did he feel bad for me? He probably pitied me.
"As you already know from the internet, that mark on you is a claim. It's placed by a Krasnyy from a bite placed on any part of the body. I'm guessing yours was placed on your wrist." Auntie Mary said. "However, to complete the claim you have to go through several stages which happens very slowly. It's partly the reason why the mark just recently appeared on you. Usually, Krasnyy's claim each other and not humans, but your case is different."
Hold on, what? Someone claimed me by biting my wrist?!
"Claims are placed either to show love or superiority. When two people share a claim it undeniably makes them closer by making it easier to understand the other's emotions, wants and fears. It can also be used to control someone, but it's looked down upon."
"Is that why humans forced Krasnyy's to claim them?" I asked.
"Did the person on the internet tell you that?"
We really need to think of a name instead of calling them "the person on the internet."
"Y-yeah."
Auntie Mary nodded. "It's a horrible thing, really. Krasnyy's were often used for humans as weapons. In fact, we still are today. Krasnyy's had made a deal with humans that we would fight for them as long as they stopped hurting our kind. Claims are not to be taken lightly. They can be created, but we can't ever get rid of them. It's like a marriage, expect you can't divorce or erase it." she laughed towards the end.
"So I was claimed by someone?" I asked.
"That's right."
"But I've never met—" I paused mid-sentence, realizing it all. I was sitting here for a reason. I was brought here for a reason. I glanced over at Kaiden. That one time when he licked my blood of his finger.. when his eyes turned red, when he could understand what I was feeling. No way.
It just clicked.
"Wait— so that means Kaiden.."
"Claimed you, yes." Auntie Mary finished for me.
I was starting to wish I could disappear from the world and not leave a single trace behind.
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Thanks for reading! We finally reached 20 chapters! I can't believe I made it this far and I hope you guys, the readers, are enjoying it so far! I honestly feel like this may be a bit boring, but I'm trying to improve and add onto the plot. I'm open to any tips of any kind!
QUESTION: If you could be any kind of fantasy "species" (Vampire, hybrid, werewolf, witch/wizard) what would it be? (I'd really like to hear this one!)
Make sure to vote if you enjoyed the chapter or haven't already!
