Chapter 2

Xyris P.O.V.

15 years later

Hindi ko maiwasan ang mapangiti habang nakatitig sa maliit na isla na pinalilibutan ng malawak na karagatan. I am ecstatic with the idea of being able to swim at the beautiful blue ocean and run around its fine milky white sand. The brochure doesn't even give justice on how beautiful this island in person is. Seeing it from the windows of the plane, it is simply breathtaking.

Though I have the soul of the Dryad, a forest nymph, other types of nature such as the ocean can also make my soul stronger. Nang inanunsiyo ng flight attendant na nakalapag na ang eroplano. A part of me wanted to jump out of the plane and run as fast as I can towards the waiting sea. That might be an exaggerated reaction but for an unknown reason I can't stop my heart from fluttering in excitement.

That kind of feeling is a little bit questionable since dryads are known to have calm and serene nature but I choose to ignore it. I'm in an island, who wouldn't be excited of that idea? Right? Right?

Head turns to look at me as I walk towards the exit of the airport. At first that makes me feel awkward but as years passed by, I had learn to ignore the glances of people around me. It seems that my new found power comes with a mystical beauty no man is immune with.

A black car awaits for me the moment I got out from the airport. Napangiti ako ng makita ang pamilyar na mukha ng lalaki. He is the man who assisted me while booking in this place.

He helps me with my luggage as I enter the passenger side of the car.

"I do hope you will enjoy your stay here in Duskfall Island." The man said as he takes the driver seat beside her.

I surveyed the place and let out a friendly smile. "I'm pretty sure I will." The excitement in my voice is very evident. The place looks to good to be true, it is like she is in the beautiful beaches in Coron, Palawan but she is not.

I make myself comfortable in my seat and close my eyes to relax a bit. I need to rest for now and first thing tomorrow, I'll be swimming in the big blue ocean they have here. I was about to let my consciousness fade to sleep when I notice something different. Kumunot ang noo ko. In just a second my smile vanished upon noticing that something is not normal with the man beside me.

I was overwhelmed with excitement that I failed to notice that there is something unusual with my surroundings. Even the mild blows of the wind is quite odd. The environment looks healthy but for some reason I feel a little bit suffocated. The man must have notice my immediate change of mood for his eyes turns to me.

"Is there something wrong?" May pagtatakang tanong nito.

"No, nothing," I force myself to let out smile. "5 hours in the plane is just quite exhausting." Pagdadahilan ko rito.

Ngumiti ito. "Yeah, I agree with you. Traveling can really take on your energy" He answered and turns the ignition on. "The early we can arrive at the hotel the earlier you can sleep so we better get going."

I let out the breath that I didn't know I am holding. Thanks God he buys my lame excuse. As the car starts moving , I focus my attention on the scenery outside the window.

This place is a fucking paradise, they are probably receiving hundred thousands of tourists per year but the locals seems to maintain the beautiful surrounding. Weird, the place certainly is beautiful but the I can't help to question why my dryad side feels disturbed and edgy. It is like something is wrong with the place, I just can't pinpoint what and why.

Tahimik na inobserbahan ko ang paligid. The whole place looks normal however as I looks at the forest on the other side of the road, there is something that made her feel uneasy.

Pumikit ako at hinayaan ang dryad na nagmanman sa mayabong gubat na nakapaligid sa buong isla. I am a part of nature and one perks of it is seeing what nature can see. She can hear a conversation from miles away through the ears of a squirrel, she can see through the leaves of a dying tree. That sounds weird maybe but that's what being a dryad all about.

My eyes scan the area that surrounds the beach, beyond the lush trees and the middle of the forest. Kumunot ang noo ko ng mamataan ang isang malaking mansion na nasa pusod ng gubat.

Curious of what could that be? I let the nosy side of me wins and decided to take a look beyond the thick walls of the mansion. I do not wish to go further for I am not really a fan of prying into other people's business but for some reason I feel like as if there is a magnet that's pulling me to explore more and I can't resist that.

This time, it seems that her snooping bring her to a kind of place that looks like an office. If she is going to judge it, she can say that it was owned by a man. Her eyes move to the table few meters away from her and just like what she expected, a man is sitting in front of it while reading few papers.

I can't help myself to smile as I let my eyes feasts on the man who seems to possessed the beauty of Apollo and the dangerous aura of Hades. Damn, this man is just beyond beautiful. I can almost imagine myself running my palms through his well toned body.

His beautiful facial feature made her heart flutters in an unknown excitement and for the first time in her 21 years of life, her heart crave to own him.

Kumunot ang noo niya sa naisip. Dryads are mystic creatures who live to balance the nature and human so it is very bizarre for them to get attracted to humans. In fact she haven't heard anything about a dryad who falls in love before. Could it have something to do with the fact that she is a part human?

Muling bumalik ang atensyon niya sa lalaki ng tumigil ito sa pagbabasa at kunot noong inikot ang tingin sa paligid. Panic arise on her chest when she realized that the man seems to notice her presence. To her surprise something unexpected happened, the man's eyes change its color from deep black to golden yellow and turn to look at her direction.

She let out a loud gasp when his eyes met hers and for a second she thinks that he was able to gaze through her soul. She can't believe it, few minutes ago he is completely oblivious of her presence but suddenly he can feel where she is? Okay, that man is completely far from a human being.

She opens her eyes immediately and takes a deep breath to calm her nerves. The man that's busy driving beside her seems to notice her trouble that he throws her with a questioning look.

"You okay?" Tanong nito.

"Yeah, just a bad nightmare in the midst of the forest." Tumatangong sagot ko habang inililibot ang tingin sa paligid. It seems that we are already at the hotel.

My eyes surveyed the luxurious place as the man maneuvered the car to the entrance.

"Were here already," Wika ng lalaki. Stating the obvious. "I suggest you sleep early tonight for you will have a long day tomorrow." She just nodded and get out of the car.

Ngayong nasa labas na siya ng sasakyan, isang bagay ang umantak sa isipan niya. The place whole place feels strange, not in a bad way but it doesn't erase the fact that it is still not normal.

Most of the locals of this island, they emit a strong aura making the place feel dangerous despite of its lively Hawaiian vibes. The man in the mansion in the midst of the forest, the man that's following her carrying her baggage and even the receptionist waiting for her and probably ninety percent of the local in this island, they are not human.

The moment she enters her hotel room, she immediately pulls her phone and dial the number of her trusted friend. After 3 rings the man picks up the phone and she can't help but smile upon hearing his sweet hello.

"What's up?" Bati niya rito.

"I'm doing great but I'm quite concerned about you. You are not going to dial my number unless you are in trouble. So what's the catch?" Napangiti ako sa isinagot nito. He really knows me.

"Well, I'm in an island called Duskfall Island and it seems that residence here is your kind so I would be very grateful if you can fill me with the information I needed." The other line went silent for a few seconds then after that I heard a deep sigh. Unti-unting napalis ang ngiti ko at naging ngiwi. From the sounds of it I know that I am is not going to like this pack.

"The island is owned by Duskfall pack. The current Alpha is Kaige, they are actually not an enemy but not an ally either." He explains. I can feel his uneasiness even though we are miles apart. It only means that though this pack is not an enemy, they are still a bad news for me and other packs.

"Why is that?" I am curious of what could be the different of Duskfall pack to other wolf packs I have met before.

"They quite a polar opposite of other wolf packs for they don't believe in matebonds. They associated themselves with witches to block the mate bond. Most of their marriage is arrange by families to keep their bloodline strong. Because of that, they maintain being one of the strongest packs in US." He continued. I can't help but grimace at their way of life.

"That sounds awful." I commented.

Considering that werewolves believes that mates is a gift of the moon goddess. I have seen few mated werewolves in my lifetime and I am not shy to admit that I envy them. Those pairs are truly a gift from above. Humans don't have mates while dryads are guardians of nature. As dryad I am not supposed feel any kind of human emotion towards anyone, though human side can feel admiration towards opposite sex however nothing beyond that. Simple admiration that can be easily erase and forgotten with just simple flaws.

"Yeah, that's true." He agreed. "Be careful while you are in there. They have witches that can recognize you and probably hurt you."

I let out a warm smile to his genuine concern. "Yeah, no worries. I'm nothing but a harmless little human so I a pretty sure they won't mind my presence here." I assured him.

We talk about few little things about his pack before we decided to bid our goodbyes.

Bumaling ang tingin ko sa labas ng bintana. This place seems to be a good place to put my mind at ease, far from the danger that awaits for me beyond this Island.

💐💐💐