A Silhouette Among Trees
Lost in the deadly façade of darkness that swirled around him, Acer waved amidst the brood of trees.
He grabbed on the shiny golden metals that were strapped to his neck and knees, flinging them into random sight.
The silvery glow of the moon created only a bit of light on the ground. Only allowing Acer to figure out the outline of the trees or any other lifeforms.
'And I'm destined to die here!'
Acer ended up standing underneath a bring ray of moonlight that peered its way from the massive foliage of the forest trees.
He looked around in a fit of panic and regret.
He certainly didn't want to return to Moorloch Academy and face all the embarrassment, in addition to an assured expulsion.
He would have rather navigated his way into Moorloch and tried to find his place there.
But what would have been the fate of the person who had done this to him?
Whether it was only a mere suspicion, that would be his logical explanation until he was proven wrong… with enough evidence.
While the tears welled up in his eyes, he'd suddenly sighted a tall figure leaning on one of the trees in front of him.
'A monster!'
He stumbled back in a fit of panic, stunned further by the lash of pale smoke that weaved around the figure.
Of a sudden, Acer saw the entity appear in front of him – a grim expression laced over his face.
He had a demeanor of perfect abnormality… almost as if it was an anomaly from reality.
"You're covered in guts," The man standing before Acer suddenly looked disgusted.
He backed away from the latter with arms folded with absolute carefree, "You're one of those students with the Elite Serenity, huh?"
Acer nodded, comforted that the entity was a human after all.
"They aren't here?"
"No!" Acer gazed at the ground hiding the heavy bound of misery on his face.
"Hump! But did you see any guy… about your age with red hair."
"He stole something of mine." The man placed his palms on Acer's shoulders.
The touch was cold and somewhat dark, sending an array of chills through his veins.
The exuding aura from the man could safely be categorized with the likes of a Grand beast – creatures that stood on the edge of divinity.
Acer had the opportunity to see the smoke that exuded from the man's fine skin. They were thick and purple… startling to any man's gaze.
While Acer visualized the man's demeanor, he was reminded of reality as the man tightened his grip on his shoulder, "Huh?"
Acer looked around for a moment, obviously confused by the question, "Am I supposed to know him?"
"Oh! No." The man backed away dazing deep into Acer's midnight eyes.
His brows creased a little, his former serious face becoming even worse. And for someone as Acer, feeling weak in his predicament, couldn't maintain such eye contact.
He turned his gaze to the limitless darkness of the forest, gazing into the nothingness.
However, a brisk movement amidst the wood piqued his interest, only allowing him a brief view of the masculine figure and thick trailing hair.
The figure hid behind a tree, unknowingly leaving his heavy pack of hair exposed in the shadows.
Acer felt paralyzed at that moment. He turned to the man's repulsive stare, almost fidgeting on his knees.
"Hump! Useless."
The man seemed to have realized staring at the latter wouldn't be of much help and decided to cool his wheezing aura.
And like a form that could choose whether or not to be detected, he disappeared, leaving along his continuous trail of purple fume.
Slowly, Acer turned to stare at the figure who he thought still hid behind the tree, but once he thought he'd located the position, the body seemed to have disappeared.
His brows shot to the sky as he looked around, confused how stealthily the latter had vanished.
'He could hide there without a noise! Isn't it obvious?'
Acer still stood upon the light of the moon. At this pace, he only thought of a good sleep… away from everyone and everything.
"You!"
A tone rang behind Acer, followed by an outburst of inhumane aura.
His blood had blown into a violent whirl sending his legs into a vivid tremor.
Only instinct made Acer gaze at the source.
It was a tall man glittering like a raw diamond into the darkness – enclosed in a fit of thick flowy shirt and wide trousers.
He looked precisely in the age range of Acer, his head gracefully adorned with overflowing blood-red hair that was packed into a high quiff.
His eyes, reflecting the shadows of the environs pierced at Acer with a formidable aura, finely complimenting his narrow nose and small mouth.
'Japanese!'
Acer could easily tell from his distinctive facial features and clothes.
He wanted to muster out words but ended up too awestruck to move his lips.
The teenager that stood before him… could be likened to a beast.
"Thank you!" Followed by the words from the teenager, he tossed a small bottle to the latter.
Acer simply nodded, effortlessly catching the bottle into a tight grip.
Although, the lad thanked him, his whole demeanor spoke of a different feeling. One of only disgust and predation.
The aura was simply percentile from being described as raw hatred.
"Give it to the man when he comes back – And don't use it."
The red-headed teenager flashed from Acer's eyes the next second, his speed as sudden and unexpected as a thundering roar in a storm.
"I guess I'll be seeing that man soon."
Acer gazed at the transparent bottle containing a blood-red liquid.
Out of nowhere, two people had managed to involve him in their tension, leaving his dreams of comfort in distant memories.
And while he thought the worst of all had played itself just before his eyes, the natural expectations from a forest surfaced.
Before his very own eyes, a giant four-legged beast glared at him, exhaling heavy breath upon its death stare.
'I definitely shouldn't have separated from the class!'