Chapter 1: High Tide

5 years after the Javini Attack took place…

Amilita Plasmata

My wound, which was located on the right side of my leg, appeared to the doctor to be vibrant every time he examined it, so he always checked it for its cause. It will become better, but then show up again as if I had done it on purpose later. I was sitting at the side of the hospital bed at the hospital. My nasal passages were completely clogged by the aroma of the disinfectant and the alcohol.

The doctor observed my sight while maintaining a wary expression in his eyes. He continued to accuse me of things that I had not even done, and he even questioned the state of my mental health since I had physically opened up such wounds.

"Doctor, I have previously mentioned you on a number of different occasions. I did not harm myself!" After seeing the disappointment in his eyes as he looked at mine, I attempted to persuade him. Even now, he seems perplexed, as seen by the twitching of his eyebrows, possibly wondering whether or not he should believe what I'm saying.

"Hm," the medical professional muttered, letting out a long breath in the process. "I would like to speak to your parents," he abruptly told me. He turned to the other side of the counter and began reorganizing his medical supplies while simultaneously tossing his gloves into the wastebasket as if what he had just said had no impact whatsoever on me. It caused me to raise one of my eyebrows.

I reminded him, "I have also informed you in the past that my parents are no longer around." He gave me a condescending shake of the head and then switched off the lamp that was glowing over my knee.

He forced a smile and said, "Lita, I really wish I could believe that. It's difficult for a young person like you to live alone with your four siblings while still attending a university," he heaved a sigh again before continuing, "Even if there is no question that your tuition is free, you still need to make ends meet with the costs of living your everyday life as well as the costs of your projects."

I gasped as I considered whether or not I should tell him the truth about the passing of my parents or if we should keep it a family secret. My opinion is that there is nothing wrong with discussing the tragic fate that befell our parents; nevertheless, the idea of having to interact with those individuals in the future given that they have previous information about our history is what makes me anxious and apprehensive.

As soon as I made up my mind, I let out a sigh. My voice began to crack as I admitted, "Our parents had been devoured by the werewolves," whispering as it slowly deteriorated.

He stopped dead in his tracks as he opened the drawer of his table to retrieve the sheet of medical prescription paper. When he glanced up to me, I immediately turned away to hide my humiliation.

“Javini attack?”

I slowly nodded, “Y-Yeah…”

He turned his head away and exhaled with a sound of dawning comprehension. He stepped back in front of me and handed me over the prescription. "Here, hand this over to the clerk at the drugstore counter. I have contacted someone there to hand you over the medicines."

“B-But, I don’t have money—”

“Forget about it for now,” Doctor Japhet cut me off. Ahm… “You surely can understand what is written in the paper, right?” he asked, making sure of something.

I nodded while staring at his handwriting.

As soon as the physician finished her countless examinations of my wound, I made a hasty retreat back to the dormitory room which I shared with my three siblings. Due to the fact that we attended the same institution, it was not an issue for them to share a room with me. They are free to go back to their own dorms anytime that they want anyway.

It took me a considerable amount of extra time to get there since I had to take care of my right leg, which was in agony whenever I moved it because of this crazy wound. This kept me from stretching it out as much as I should have. Yvar opened the door just as I was preparing to open it myself as soon as I arrived, which was a fortunate coincidence.

My forehead began to furrow as I can feel a boost of serotonin arising.

"Sister, today is the day that Celeste will have her swimming lesson as part of their physical education class,” Yvar greeted me with a warm smile on his face and briefed me about where they were going. "I'll go and look after her," he added.

When I glanced down at our younger sister, I saw that she was already dressed in her bikini and smiling up at me with the kindest of expressions. I shrugged my shoulders and showed them my approval.

"All right, I'll go after as soon as I've completed what I need to accomplish. Take care!"

Soon after that, I found myself brushing my hair after having to fight myself from adjusting my reflexes. My wounds seemed to be becoming even worse, particularly when I accidently smacked it against the table's foot, and I can't stop myself from letting out a low-key mumble of anguish. It had the sensation of sinking deeper into my bones with each passing second.

After taking the medication, I slid the remaining pills into a small jar and rolled it over the top of the drawer where it was stored. I became completely still as I focused my attention on the ring that I had concealed inside of a little clear box. The fragments of the recollection of the Javini assault that I shared with that werewolf are cloudy and warped to some degree. I am able to make use of my vision to see the finer details of how he appears, but I cannot fully comprehend what sets him apart from the other werewolves in such a significant way.

They are almost indistinguishable in appearance.

I carefully picked up the box and took the ring off of it. The recollection of the werewolf hastily running away from us as soon as he heard the sounds of the other werewolves howling in his direction, perhaps asking for his appearance; however, I am not quite certain of this.

That werewolf was unaware that his ring had fallen off of his finger at any point. However, it does not seem that the ring would be able to be worn by him in any case. No matter how much I tried to shake my head just to be sure about what I saw, it is still quite evident that the ring was moving in the direction of mine as soon as he ran away.

"Wait, you dropped something!" At that moment, I could even hear myself yelling at him while simultaneously waving my hands to draw his attention to something that he had absentmindedly left behind.

As I examined each nook and cranny of this ring, which I must have done hundreds of times by this point, I rubbed the side of my eyes and shook my head. It is entirely made of bronze, but it has a bigger yellowstone as well as smaller blue ones at the sides, making the total number of stones at three.

It seems to be pricey, particularly based on the sparkling brilliance of the stones, which are something that I have not seen anywhere else.

The circumference of the ring is unquestionably appropriate for a human finger, so the question is why was that it fell from a werewolf?

The. Werewolf. Has. A. Bigger. Figure. Than. Human. Beings.

“You are still thinking about him, huh?”

Nera Plimmyrika's voice, who is my closest friend here at the university, made my thoughts leap out. My soul was jolted into action when she suddenly spoke out in the middle of my own stillness. My back straightened as it seemed as if I was regaining consciousness from staring at nowhere.

“Please knock at the door thrice by next time,” I chastised her while putting on an attitude of bewilderment

Nera is younger than me by a year and clearly belonged to a lower grade level than mine. We first became acquainted with one another because of Celeste's swimming classes. Nera is part of Celeste's coaching staff for students. Additionally, Nera is a scholar just like I am; the only difference between us is that she is a student-athlete in the sport of swimming, while I am a scholar in the academic field.

While Nera was leaning against the door frame, she rolled her eyes and showed me how her arms were crossed in front of her chest. Nera reminded me, "Come on! I have suggested to you before to have experts determine whether or not the stones in question were authentic." She spoke casually at hand by shrugging her shoulders over serious matters.

I loosen my shoulders and reclined my elbows on the table's edge. And in the exact same way that Nera ambled around and tossed herself on top of my bed, I saw a glimmer of waving light and heard the sound of water splashes flowing out of the ring like tidal waves.