Ch. 19 Great Gift and Bleak Night

It's the end of June and Myrddin is driving towards the Beacon Hills Preserve in his 2010 Dodge Charger.

A few things happened in the past 2 months.

——————

June 6th 2011

Myrddin wakes up and gets ready for his drivers test. It's going to be first thing in the morning and he's going to start in the parking lot of the middle school.

It would have been the high school but too many cars are there from early morning sports practice.

Ada is bringing a lawn chair and a book while Myrddin takes his test.

It should be nice and easy, but you never know with this type of thing. Your inspector could be a real peace of work and fail you just because you greeted them the wrong way.

But after 20 minutes Myrddin returns back to the middle school and gets told he aced the test.

"Just like all your other tests huh?" Ada jokes. Then she wraps him in a crushing bear hug. "Congratulations Myrddin! Oh~! My baby boy is already 16 years old!"

"M-mom!" Myrddin taps his mom on the back signifying he gives. Mostly because he can't breathe. Just because he grew taller doesn't mean he suddenly got stronger or packed on any muscle. If anything he stayed at the same weight, which was a little worrying.

"Sorry" Ada releases him. "You need to stop growing… you're making me feel old…"

Myrddin rolls his eyes. "Don't let dad hear you say that"

"Oh, if I tell your father that I'm sure he'll make me feel young again" Ada says while imagining her devilishly handsome husband.

Myrddin gags. "Ok! Please no! I don't want to hear about this!"

"Hahaha!"

Both Ada and Myrddin turn towards the driving instructor who coughed into her hand after laughing. "Sorry"

Myrddin slumps his shoulders and wishes he can disappear. Not only did he have to hear his mom talk about his dad making her feel young again but his mom said that infront of someone else.

"Oh! Sorry, did we forget something?" Ada asks.

The brown haired woman pushes her glasses up on her nose while she gives a bright smile. "I just wanted to tell you what a great driver Myrddin was. And I have to hand this to you" She gives Myrddin his certificate. "Take this to the Secretary of State and they'll help you get your license from there. Congratulations and happy birthday"

"Thank you" Myrddin takes the cirtificate and returns the smile.

The driving instructor walks past his mom. "You go girl"

They share a high-five and Myrddin definitely wants to 'make like a giant stump and magically disappear'. But alas, he's stuck with his mom talking and now bragging about his father in ways that a son should never have to hear.

So he gets into the passenger seat and wonders what the meaning of life is.

After 5 minutes Ada gets into the car and begins driving home with a big smile on her face.

"I'm glad your smiling and all mom, but I think I'm scarred for life" Myrddin slumps into the seat.

"Awwww~ Did I corrupt that pure and innocent mind of yours Myr?" Ada teases her 16 year old son. 16! It feels like yesterday that she just gave birth to him. The passage of time is scary when you have kids and watch them grow up in the blink of an eye. But on the other side of the same coin she's overjoyed and so happy to be blessed with a son and a daughter. (Even if sometimes she feels like it's a curse when she has to watch them suffer)

Myrddin doesn't respond. He looks down at the certificate in his hand and tries to forget about his parents reliving their youth.

It takes a few minutes before their driving down the street of the private community.

"What's that in the driveway?" Myrddin is looking at a tarp poorly covering something in their driveway.

"That's your present from me and your father!" Ada's smile grows. Her smile grows when she thinks about how Myrddin will react to what's underneath it. Her poker face was always terrible, Sebastian can attest to that.

Ada parks the car on the street, they need to go to the Secretary of State soon anyway so there isn't a point parking in the driveway. And she wants a clear view of Myrddin revealing the car and having her car parked next in the background won't make for a very good video.

They both get out of the car and Ada grabs Myrddin's arm.

"Hold on, we're going to video chat your father first" Ada takes out her phone and holds it out at arms length.

"Really? But it's like 4pm over there. Wont Dad be busy?" Myrddin knows that London is 8 hours ahead of their time zone in California.

Ada let's go of his arm and puts her arm around him. "Your father made sure to clear his schedule for this moment!" She excitedly rocks Myrddin side to side.

"There's my young man! Happy Birthday Myrddin!"

Myrddin and Ada look at the phone screen and see Sebastian Wyllt. He's currently dressed in a suit and he looks genuinely happy with his blindingly white teeth.

"Hey dad" Myrddin waves at the phone.

Ada rocks Myrddin side to side again. "Sebas! Look at him! He's already taller than me and trying to match your height!"

Sebastian holds his chin in his right hand while his other arm is across his chest and his eyes narrow. "Hmmmm~ Think you're gonna beat your old man do ya?" He jokes.

Myrddin grins. "I'd be happy with a tie"

Sebastian smirks and rests his arms on his desk. "So tell me already! How did the test go?! I'm dying from suspense here!"

Ada smiles, full of pride. "What do you think?"

Sebastian lifts his chin slightly and raises his eyebrows. "Aced?"

"Aced" Myrddin holds up the certificate.

"There ya go! It's a good thing you've got your mom's brains Myr. It took me like 4ish tries to pass my test" Sebastian admits.

Ada gives a knowing look to her husband. "4ish? I remember going with you to your 7th-ish"

Sebastian holds his hands up. "Semantics!" He lowers his arms and looks around the screen he has propped up on his desk. "Where's Gwen at? I can't see her"

"I'll give you one guess" Ada shakes her head.

"Beauty sleep" Sebastian sagely closes his eyes. "I hate to say sorry again, but I'll say it as many times as I need to. I'm sorry I can't be there in person for you Myrddin. 16 is a VERY big deal"

"I know you'd be here if you could dad. But don't worry, just focus on getting your work done so you can come home for that extra long vacation" Myrddin lowers the certificate and gives his dad a smile.

Sebastian smiles apologetically "Thanks for understa-"

"Sir, the presentation is ready"

Myrddin and Ada watch as Sebastian's smile slowly fades to a deathly serious expression.

"I told everyone- no. Just. Son of a…. Haaaah" Sebastian has to force himself to calm down. "Tell everyone that I'm calling my son on his birthday"

A man off screen responds in a helpless tone. "I've tried sir… And they don't want to be kept waiting"

"Are you…." Sebastian rubs his temples. "Tell then I'll be there in 5- No. 10 minutes"

"I… can try to get you 5 at most sir" The man says before a door shuts in the background.

Sebastian glares at something off the screen before flipping it off angrily with both fingers. Then he composes himself and looks back at his family minus his youngest. "Apparently nobody can function without me holding their hands. I'm sorry you two. But even if they drag me out of here I'll stay on this call for the next 5 minutes"

Ada and Myrddin show an expression of understanding and a hint of sadness.

Sebastian drags his right hand down his face. "Let's get the ball rolling a little? Did you see the thing?"

Myrddin's smile comes back and he looks at the driveway. "Kinda hard to miss it"

"Great! Dear, can you swap to the outer camera for the next part?" Sebastian asks Ada.

"Sure thing!" Ada gets back her excitement and points the camera at Myrddin and the tarp covered object.

"Thanks Adhan, love you" Sebastian blows a kiss to his wife. "I can see you Myrddin! Go ahead!"

Adhan nods her head and holds her phone with both hands.

Myrddin walks over to the tarp covered car. The tires were poking out beneath the tarp but he couldn't tell what type of car it was. He grabs the tarp and-

*Crinkling sound of a tarp being moved quickly*

The tarp is ripped away to reveal as black Dodge Challenger with green stripes.

Myrddin's eyes widen and looks over at his mom.

Sebastian shouts a little bit. "We know it's a little too much for your first car, but we know you'll be needing it for the ladies soon enough"

Ada lowers the phone a little bit while she adds on. "And the colors match your hair and eyes. We thought black and red would look good but we both decided red is kinda taboo now. So we went with your hair and eye color"

"What do you think?" Sebastian asks. He doesn't want to seem like he's trying to give his son something expensive since he can't be there, but even if he was there he'd still get his son a car like this.

"Sorry, what did you ask? I don't think my brain can think" Myrddin is 'shooketh'.

"I think he likes it" Ada whispers.

*Slam!* "Boss! They-"

"Enough Jerard! I get it!" Sebastian motions for his Secretary to get out.

The door closes again and Sebastian winces. "Sorry, but… I've got to go. You two have fun at the Secretary of State. Remember, 5 months and I'll be home for a while. I love you both so much! Happy Birthday Myrddin, Big 16! I'll call you guys for the song and cake tonight. Love you both so, so, so much!"

"Love you dad" Myrddin waves goodbye.

"Love you too Sebas" Ana watches Sebastian kiss his fingers and place them to the camera.

When Sebastian's fingers cover the camera the call ends.

There's some silence between the mother and son for a minute.

Myrddin scratches the back of his head. "What would you have done if I didn't pass?"

——————

Not much else happened during the two months aside from a deer being found dead with a spiral carved in it.

That was one of the scarier things he had seen. And that's above meeting Caval for the first time.

Oh, and his eyes got worse. But that's just some minor news.

But right now, the beginning of August, he was driving towards the Preserve.

Last night he had a vision about some new woman in town going into the woods. And he couldn't help but get the feeling something was up with her.

He had seen her around town the past few days. Mainly when he was at the Vet Clinic. It looked like she knew Deaton, but she left as soon as Myrddin entered. And Deaton didn't say much. Not even a 'she's just an old friend' or anything.

I'm the vision this woman looked shocked and scared. He also saw that she was looking at someone's back. But that's it.

——————

Wandering the woods at this point is just a regular walk. Even without Caval.

It's late at night but he was doing as much research as he could. And he's pretty sure he narrowed down where in the Preserve she is.

He parks his charger in front of a burned down house and takes off into the woods. Not noticing a pair of blood red eyes watching his every move.

There wasn't much to go off of from the vision besides the different types of trees but he did see a burnt roof. And that's when he remembered hearing about a creepy abandoned and burned down house. It took a while but he eventually found it.

If he couldn't find where this woman is… we'll he couldn't have done anything without knowing where she is.

As for knowing it will happen tonight? There was a full moon.

——————

Myrddin is out of breath but that dreadful feeling in the pit of his stomach keeps getting worse and worse.

He can feel the twig in his back pocket rubbing against him as he runs between the trees and frantically looking around.

There's no point using a flashlight as it would just give him tunnel vision and by this point he is used to the dark nights. The full moon also lights up the area a bit when it doesn't hide behind some clouds.

As he's running he thinks he sees someone off in the distance and runs towards, presumably, the woman.

Right when he would be able to see her a cloud covers the sky, sending the land below it into darkness.

"Hey! Lady!" Myrddin shouts as he strains his eyes.

*Thunk!*

He slams his toes into a sturdy root and falls hard.

"Ughhhh~" Myrddin grabs the side of his head with his left hand and pushes himself up.

As he tries to get his bearings he notices everything is blurry as shit.

"Damn!" Myrddin mutters beneath his breath as he begins moving his hands across the forest floor, through all the grass, leaves, and dirt.

He's on his hands and knees trying to find his glasses in the dark when he kicks himself for losing his glasses. "Just have to pull the Velma card didn't you…" He mutters to himself.

A chilly breeze wisps through the area and drags some dried leaves with it. There aren't many other sounds besides the rustling of grass and leaves as Myrddin pats the ground.

Myrddin's fingers brush against something hard and he goes to grab his glasses but feels a hand.

"Ahhhhhhh!" Myrddin shouts as he falls backwards. "Huff…huff Huff…. huff Huff…huff" His breath begins calming down as his heart practically beats out of his chest.

"Is that you lady? I dropped my glasses, were you trying to hand them to me?" Myrddin asks while getting back onto his knees.

There isn't a response and so Myrddin cautiously reaches his hands out towards the ground.

He finds something directly in the palm of his left hand. But his right fingers touch something wet and cold. And he's fairly certain he didn't piss himself.

His left fingers wrap around the frame of his glasses and he brings it to his face.

Myrddin immediately took his right hand back when he felt the cold liquid.

As he puts his glasses on the clouds move past and the moon lights the forest for a brief moment. But that's all it takes for Myrddin to drop his glasses and fall back.

"Aggghhhhhh!" Myrddin falls on his ass and crawls backwards away from the dead body in front of him.

The woman's throat has been ripped out and there was blood everywhere. Her lifeless eyes stare up at the bright moon as clouds go to cover it again.

"Heerrrr- Blegghhhh!!!" Myrddin moves onto his side and throws up.

It takes a minute for him to come back to his senses. His body feeling weak and his mind feeling drained. His limbs are shaking and he's light headed as he begins to process there is a dead body in front of him and whatever killed it is around here.

*GGGGGRRrrrrrrrrr*

A deep and guttural growl echoes throughout the Preserve.

"C…. Caval?" Myrddin calls out quietly. But he knows this growl is way too deep and bestial to be the coyote he knows.

If he's going to try and fight for his life he needs his glasses. Myrddin quickly crawls forward to find his glasses.

He looks up after he gets to where he thinks he dropped his glasses.

Off in the Darkness he can see 2 blurry red orbs floating in the air.

Myrddin is struck with fear as the growling gets louder. He shakily searches the ground with his trembling hands. But he grabs his glasses and looks up.

The clouds off in the distance make way for the moonlight to hit the ground.

And Myrddin's heart stops as he sees a giant figure on all-fours. Myrddin is able to see the red eyes locked onto himself. His blurry vision long forgotten as his mind goes blank.

The giant creature takes off as it bounds towards Myrddin. With the growling being so loud it's deafening.

Myrddin's eyes widen as the creature basically arrives in front of him in a second with its bulging front left limb raised into the air.

Without being able to think, Myrddin raises his left hand to defend himself in a swiping motion, his palm facing this beast.

*Krrr-Crack!!*

Myrddin snaps his eyes open and rolls over. He gets his feet under himself as he takes off in a sprint.

*Thump-Thump* *Thump-Thump* *Thump-Thump* *Thump-Thump*

The pounding the beast does on the ground as it runs after Myrddin is thundering in his ears.

He doesn't dare look behind him because he knows as soon as he does he's done for.

Feeling the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end he dives to his right.

*Wham!!!* *Bmmmfff!*

The ground shatters underneath the beast's swing.

There isn't any time to think about how strong something would have to be to break the Earth to make that sound. Myrddin rolled and he uses that momentum to get back to his feet and take off in a different direction.

He doesn't notice that he's avoiding tree branches and roots as he runs faster than he had ever ran before. Faster than humanly possible in fact.

*ROOOOOooooaaaarrrrrr!!*

The roar of the beast only fuels the fire lit under Myrddin's ass as he tries to run for his life.

But he can hear the Beast continue it's pursuit. The sound of its meaty paws and claws hitting the ground, pushing it forward, beats against Myrddin's skull.

Myrddin's teeth grind against each other as he runs towards anywhere but nowhere. His arms and legs, pumping faster than he could possibly will.

Trees go by in a blur, but not the usual blur. And the scene constantly changes while he runs.

The hair on the back of his neck stands up again-

*Scchlllllll*

"Gaahhhhh!" Myrddin feels such a sharp pain in his lower back that he collided with a tree and goes crashing to the ground beneath him. His left shoulder clipped a tree and knocked him off balance. He rolls on the ground but pushes himself back up as an image flashes inside his mind. The clearing with the giant stump.

The Beast's breath practically rolls down Myrddin's back and burns his fresh wound.

However! Before the Beast can strike its final blow it's claws gets stopped by something sticking out of Myrddin's back pocket. The Beast recoils slightly and howls as it goes to continue its pursuit.

But as it loses sight of Myrddin for a split second behind a tree…

It loses him.

Scent and all.

——————

"Fffffftttt! Ahhh!" Myrddin collapses into a clearing. He groans and shouts as he feels a searing pain on his lower back.

He looks up and sees the giant stump and he drops the slightly crushed glasses to the short grass.

He presses his forehead against the ground as the pain wracks his brain. His fingers dig into the soil while his toes curl. "Gahhh! FpaaahhhHAAAA!"

Myrddin is only a foot away from the stump and he stretches his hand out and touches the stump.

He doesn't want to die. He managed to escape that… Wolf. And all he needs to do is heal.

Sweat drops down off his chin as his hand slides down the stump until he brings his arms under his body. He grunts as he gets to his knees and sits on his heels. He uses his right hand to prop himself up while he puts his left hand on the gushing wound.

There's a hint of iron in the back of his mouth and the pain grows more intense.

Until suddenly he feels that special euphoric sensation from months ago.

He can feel the shredded skin be drawn back to his body and mend back together. His left shoulder that was nearly numb goes back to better than normal.

After the pain is fully gone and replaced with the euphoria that doesn't dissipate, he collapses onto his side as his fatigue catches up to him and his eyes and body don't listen to his protests as he drifts to sleep.