Chapter 1: Moving In
Underworld
“It would seem the weapon has appeared at last.”
A man dressed in all black sits on a throne chair, large spikes pooling in on either side of him. Several gasps are heard throughout the room. Another voice states simply, eyes drawing to the second man, “And what would you have us do? No doubt your brother covets the power it holds for himself.”
The blonde in the chair pinches the bridge of his nose in annoyance, casting his red gaze towards the speaker. He rests his head on his knuckles for several moments before answering, “Ezra, you’ll go to the human world and watch over it. Keep it safe.”
The raven-haired man tips his head to the side, mild confusion on display for just a moment. He narrows his eyes and pries, “You simply want me to watch it this time? The last time it spawned, you had me do much more than watch it.”
He rises from his chair, the spikes receding into the ground, and states as he approaches the dark-haired vampire, placing a hand on his shoulder, “Yes, well, these times humans don’t believe we exist. We’ll have to keep special attention on this generation’s weapon.”
One of the council members asks timidly, “My lord, shouldn’t we just capture the weapon for ourselves before Lord Ryu does the same? After all, he destroys every weapon he gets hold of.”
He stands tall, hands on his hips, and he questions coolly, “You do not trust my judgement, Serena?”
Serena fumbles with her black dress and counters, “That isn’t what I meant, my lord. Forgive me. I just worry that the weapon will fall to him again.”
His red eyes fall back to Ezra as he answers with a knowing look to the vampire, “That will not happen so long as Ezra knows what he’s doing.”
The man gives a small nod. “Of course. I will keep an eye on it, my lord.”
With that, the blonde places his palm out beside Ezra, a portal opening for the man to walk through. Without a second thought, the plan is set into action as Ezra hops through and finds his new priority.
Human world 20 Years Later
She shuffles the last of the boxes into the room and grins as she’s finally got everything in the dorm room at last.
“You need anything else, Leila?”
She turns and shakes her head to the older woman. “No, I think I’m all set, mom.”
The graying blonde pulls the twenty-year-old into a small hug, taking the moment to cherish her grown daughter. Leila smiles and embraces her mother back, stating after a few moments, “You know I can always come home, yeah? It’s only a two-hour drive.”
Her mother releases her and swipes a tear from her eye, patting her arm. “I know that. Just make sure you call sometimes.”
Leila nods and follows her out of the dormitory and back to the silver truck she had driven up state for the move. Leila’s own small car is parked beside the monstrosity, and she gives a faint wave to her mother as she climbs in the vehicle.
She watches as it roars to life and soon pulls out of the lot. Once completely gone from her view, Leila exhales and heads back inside the building. She returns to her dorm room on the far east of the dormitory and slides her ID card into the lock, a resonating click sounding to let her know the door had unlocked.
She glances around for a moment, finally taking in her new home. It’s one of the nicer dorms. There’s a full kitchen as soon as she walks in. The refrigerator sits to the left of the door, and then there’s the plain, white stove. Nice, marble countertops and a small sink sit opposite of the stove and refrigerator. Cherry wood cabinets rest above the countertops, but there isn’t much space in them.
The living room combined with the kitchen is small, but Leila doubts she’d use it much. It’s too small for anything like a party.
A washer and dryer don’t exist in the small space, but it did have two bedrooms and a private bathroom. Those two assets are what made her choose the more expensive dorm.
Each bedroom sat side-by-side, but she didn’t mind. Doors were made for a reason, and Leila would frequent that usage. She wants her privacy.
Grasping the handle, she walks into her small room and looks at all the boxes and suitcases brought in by the volunteers and pinched the bridge of her nose. This is going to be a long process, and she dreads it.
She starts with her clothes. They would be the easiest to put away. She quickly stuffs them into the deep pocket dresser provided by the campus and then places all the hangers in the closet. She makes her bed and that clears two suitcases. Leila stares at the remaining luggage to unpack and sighs, retreating to her comfy bed.
A knock to her door makes her sigh internally. She was hoping to get a little bit of rest since she’d been up for the last twenty-four hours, panicking about the books she was still waiting to be delivered to the campus bookstore.
Rising from her spot, she turns to the newcomer, her roommate. An abrupt hug and excited greeting assault her. Leila naturally tenses at the physical contact and laughs nervously.
“Uhh hi…?”
“Nice to finally meet you, roomie!”
She is released from the hug, and a hand greets her next. Leila glances down at the appendage hesitantly but shakes the girl’s hand.
“Sooooo what’s there to do here? My name’s Hayley, and I’m a freshman. What about you? Is this your first year too? Oh, I’m so glad to be free from home!”
“…what?”
Leila’s face contorts into an expression of confusion and slowly to one of mirth.
“What a peculiar roommate?” echoes her first thought.
She covers her mouth in an effort to stifle her laughter and answers, “My name is Leila. I’m a second year, and there’s plenty to do, but since you’re a freshman you have orientation and the Preview program all weekend.”
Her joyful expression fell. “What? No! I wanted to talk with you more!”
Leila smiles and snags her student ID while showing Hayley to her freshman program taking place at the amphitheater, saying, “Preview isn’t bad. It’s pretty fun actually. I did it last year. There’s dancing, partying, hypnotizing, and some more stuff. Go enjoy it. I have errands to take care of, and I’ll be at the dorm later.”
Before the girl could object, Leila makes a left turn and goes straight for the bookstore inside the university center of the campus. Even if most of her books aren’t there yet, she needs to get a few supplies while she had the time.