Chapter 6 Shift
Shift
Next Day (or Night)...
Julian was waiting for him at the Duskvault Gate, which led out of Nightvallen to the north. The young man had been seated on the lip of one of the burbling fountains that framed the gate, but quickly jumped off and headed towards Ryder with a big grin on his face.
“Hey, Ryder!” Julian was beaming. “I’m so glad you came. Thank you for doing this.”
Ryder had agreed to assist the young man in shifting.
Julian was having a hard time with it, which made sense as even pure Weryn could take years before they shifted for the first time.
Julian also had all those other gifts from the various Bloodlines that were coming online all the time for him.
Shifting, though, was one of the hardest because it required the Vampire to let go of their corporeal form altogether.
Not even the Mirryr did that. He hoped that Julian wasn’t disappointed if by simply working with Ryder that he didn’t shift tonight.
“There is no need to thank me. You are pack, Julian, and my prince. It is my honor to do so,” Ryder assured him.
Julian ducked his head and rubbed the back of his neck. “Still, with everything going on, it’s not exactly important to help me learn to shift.”
“On the contrary, teaching you to use all of your gifts well enhances your safety so it is very important,” Ryder contradicted.
“I thought Grayson might be joining us. Where is he?” Julian asked.
“He is playing student.”
He had left his beloved back in their bed. Grayson had bemoaned the loss of his “fuzzy” but was eager for him to go and help Julian. While Julian was, of course, Daemon’s fledgling, he was all of their prince. They were all responsible for him.
“He is very good at pretending to be innocent and helpless,” Julian admitted.
“He is at that.”
“But I’m glad he’s not. If he truly was what he seemed, the Sect going after him would be…” Julian didn’t complete the sentence but just shook his head as if the barbarity of it could not be put into words.
“It would be.”
“And I’m sure it still is,” Julian amended. “Grayson is just so capable and level-headed. Daemon speaks of him–of you both–with such respect for your abilities to retain control in a crisis.”
Was that true of him? It was certainly true of Grayson, but he wasn’t sure that he was terribly calm or in control most of the time.
“Grayson is intent on knowing every student and making sure they are who they say they are,” Ryder admitted.
And avoiding that reporter who knows his mother and him. But he promised to speak to her today.
“Well, I’m grateful that he was able to spare you,” Julian said.
“He also understood that you did not need an audience. You need to focus purely on what you’re doing without any additional stress for the shift,” Ryder said.
“Performance anxiety? Yeah, yeah, I guess I can see that. I almost asked Christian to come and record it, but then I thought differently. We’re trying to both show the glory of being a Vampire, but also demystify it.
Do you know what I mean?” Julian admitted.
“We’re just like them and look! We’re doing it so can you, etcetera, etcetera. ”
“You’re not like anyone, Julian. Both you and Christian from what I can see are unique,” Ryder remarked dryly.
“I don’t know how unique I am. This shifting thing… Well, I doubt anything will happen tonight.” Julian shrugged, looking a little defeated.
That was not what Ryder wished him to feel. But at the same time, he knew it was likely nothing would. That wasn’t a bad thing. It was just the beginning.
“It might not, but this is just the first of many times we will do this together. So there is no pressure.” Knowing that the young man was uncomfortable speaking of his importance to Vampire-kind, Ryder switched topics, “I see that you dressed how I suggested.”
“Yeah, I assume it’s for ease of stripping them off?” Julian grinned.
Both of them had on loose, draw-string pants and zip-up hoodies. Ryder’s pants were black while his top was a deep crimson, which Grayson claimed was his color. Julian had on gray pants and a purple shirt that matched his eyes.
“And comfort. No buttons, flies or ties,” Ryder stated. “Easier to get on and off in the wilds.”
“So we are going outside the walls of Nightvallen!” Julian practically was vibrating as he realized this. “I thought so because of where we were meeting by the gate, but I didn’t want to get my hopes up.”
“We’re heading into Shadow’s Company,” Ryder explained.
That was the name of the wood that bordered most of Nightvallen’s north and west sides.
“Best name ever for a forest,” Julian joked.
“Indeed.”
Ryder went over to the gate mechanism that undid the locking component. A single push on a bar and there was the click, click, click as it opened for them and the wilds of the Ever Dark were revealed.
The two moons shone brightly on the white stone path that meandered gracefully through a well-manicured park that surrounded Nightvallen.
The forest pushed inwards all around those sculpted rose gardens and curling paths.
The trees were tall and grew thickly together, letting little light stream down between them.
Ryder was taking them to a small clearing that he had shifted into a bear in not too long before the academy had opened.
Things–and himself–now were so different from then.
It might as well have been another life altogether when that had happened.
He thought of all the animals that he could shift into now that he had accepted himself as Weryn.
The tattoos on his arms were quite out of date.
He wasn’t sure if there was enough skin on his body to tattoo every animal’s form he could shift into.
Ryder gestured for Julian to walk alongside him as they exited the city on the pale, stone road.
The gate shut behind them, clicking and locking in place.
A mere drop of their blood placed on the smooth plate by the side of the gate would cause it to open for them.
Or they could simply climb up the walls and bound inside.
Ryder found himself relaxing as nature fully surrounded them and he said, “You enjoy the wilds? Most Vampires–despite being predators–are not fond of them. Many would prefer the creature comforts of a Blood Den or even an alley as opposed to going out into the Ever Dark.”
“That’s true, but the wilds of the Ever Dark can change a Vampire from predator into prey so I guess it makes a lot of sense to be leery of it,” Julian reminded him.
He told Ryder that Caemorn, powerful as he was, would take the magical spear, Borage, with him when he went riding with Christian into the wilds.
Balthazar almost altogether refused to go, claiming he was a “city Vampire” not a “country Vampire” or “gods forbid, whatever liking those blasted dark woods would make me.” Julian mimicked Balthazar’s voice so well that it had Ryder in stitches.
“Don’t get me wrong. I love Balthazar, but he is definitely not an outside sort of person,” Julian admitted fondly. “But I’m guessing you are. Though I suppose it would be weird for a Weryn not to be.”
“It would be.”
Ryder loved the woods. He fully understood how he would have gone out to hunt or collect all the materials for his palace in the wilds.
He could very well imagine spending days hunting and camping.
He wondered if Grayson was a “city Vampire” too or if he’d be willing to go.
Surprisingly, he realized that Caemorn might be a good companion in the wilds.
“You should ask him. I think he’d like that. He might not talk very much, but I don’t think you’d mind a quiet companion,” Julian answered his unasked question. Flushing, Julian said, “Sorry, sorry, didn’t mean to listen. I honestly thought you’d said that out loud.”
“No worries. I’m glad you believe it’s a good idea. I would not have thought to invite him–let alone that he’d agree to go–before all of this,” Ryder admitted.
“Yeah, but isn’t it great that you can now?” Julian flashed him that winning smile. “He needs more friends. He deserves more of them.”
It was truly startling how effective that smile was. Ryder had been among many pretty people in his day, but Julian connected somehow on a level that others did not. His good looks only added to that.
“I suppose it is,” Ryder admitted.
“The wilds are amazing. And terrifying,” Julian added the last quickly as if to assure Ryder he wasn’t foolish.
The Ever Dark was beautiful but deadly. “Christian and I have already filmed twenty shows for our Youtube series, Existence, just scouting out a five-hundred foot section of Shadow’s Company nearest the west wall. ”
“I can well imagine. Creatures must come near with you two out there, lured by your blood and voices.” Ryder tried to keep any warning note out of his voice as the Master Vampire in him was coming out to protect the young fledgling.
“We really want to check out the Mer people in the oceans. Daemon said that no one has gotten them to communicate, but I think we will,” Julian happily said.
“Yet that’s well down the line. There’s so much just here.
We’re doling those videos out in between our Vampire content, which most people tune in for.
But I can honestly say that we get just as big numbers on our creature content these days too. ”
“I will have to watch those as well. I’m curious what you’ve found.”
“As more and more people understand the fullness of the Ever Dark, there’s just so much interest in it.
” Julian’s eyes gleamed. “Human scientists are begging to come but Daemon is not so keen on them being here. I suppose to him it would feel like he was getting examined because he and the Ever Dark are so connected.”
“I know you still identify with humans, Julian, but they are–”
“The enemy,” Julian finished for him. “I know. I know. But they aren’t only that. And not all of them are.”