Chapter 1: High Tide

5 years after the Javini Attack took place…

Amilita Plasmata

The wound on the right side of my leg always looked raw and vivid whenever the doctor examined it, so he kept checking, searching for its cause. It would start to heal, only to flare up again, as if I had somehow reopened it on purpose. I sat on the edge of the hospital bed, my nasal passages flooded with the sharp scent of disinfectant and alcohol.

The doctor studied me with a wary look in his eyes. He kept accusing me of things I hadn’t done, even questioning my mental state because he believed I had intentionally opened my own wounds.

“Doctor, I’ve told you this many times before. I did not hurt myself.” I tried to convince him when I saw the disappointment in his eyes as they met mine. Even now, his brows twitched with uncertainty, as though he were still deciding whether to believe me.

“Hm,” the doctor muttered, letting out a long breath. “I’d like to speak to your parents,” he said abruptly.

He turned away to reorganize his supplies, tossing his gloves into the wastebasket as if his words hadn’t shaken me at all. I lifted one eyebrow in response.

I reminded him, “I’ve already told you that my parents aren’t around anymore.”

He responded with a condescending shake of his head and switched off the lamp shining over my knee.

He forced a smile and said, “Lita, I really wish I could believe that. It’s hard for someone your age to live on their own with four siblings while also attending university.”

I gasped as I weighed whether to tell him the truth about my parents’ passing or keep it a family secret. I don’t believe there’s anything wrong with speaking about the tragedy that took them from us; what unsettles me is the thought of having to face people later who already know our history.

Once I made up my mind, I let out a sigh. My voice cracked as I confessed, “Our parents were devoured by werewolves,” the words fading into a whisper.

He froze as he opened the drawer to retrieve a sheet of prescription paper. When he looked up at me, I quickly turned away, trying to hide my humiliation.

“Javini attack?”

I slowly nodded, “Y-Yeah…”

He turned away and exhaled softly, as if something had just clicked into place. Then he stepped back toward me and handed me the prescription.

“Here. Give this to the clerk at the pharmacy counter. I’ve already arranged for them to provide your medicine.”

“B-But, I don’t have money—”

“Forget about it for now,” Doctor Japhet cut me off. “You can read what’s written on the paper, right?” he asked, as if double-checking.

I nodded while staring at his handwriting. 

As soon as the physician finished her countless examinations of my wound, I hurried back to the dorm room I shared with my three siblings. Since we all attended the same university, sharing a room wasn’t a problem; they could return to their own dorms whenever they wished.

It took me longer than usual to get there because my right leg flared with pain whenever I moved it, forcing me to be careful with every step. The strange wound kept me from stretching it the way I should have.

Just as I reached for the door, Yvar opened it from the other side.

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

“Sister, today is Celeste’s swimming lesson for her PE class,” Yvar informed with a warm smile. “I’ll go and look after her,” he added.

When I looked down at our younger sister, she was already in her bikini, smiling up at me with the sweetest expression. I gave a small shrug, silently giving them my approval.

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

Not long after, I was brushing my hair, struggling to keep my reflexes in check. My wound seemed to be getting worse, especially after I accidentally knocked it against the leg of the table, and I couldn’t stop a quiet groan of pain from slipping out. With every passing second, it felt as though the ache were sinking deeper into my bones.

After taking my medication, I slid the remaining pills into a small jar and pushed it to the back of the drawer. I went completely still, my gaze fixed on the ring hidden inside a small clear box.

My memories of the Javini assault, the one I shared with that werewolf, were hazy and distorted. I could picture the fine details of his appearance, yet I still couldn’t grasp what made him so different from the others.

They were almost indistinguishable in appearance.

I carefully picked up the box and removed the ring. A memory surfaced of the werewolf fleeing as soon as he heard the others howling in his direction, perhaps calling for him, though I wasn’t entirely sure.

The werewolf never realized his ring had slipped from his finger. In any case, it didn’t seem as though he could have worn it for long. No matter how much I tried to shake off what I’d seen, it was still clear; the ring had moved toward mine the moment he ran away.

“Wait—you dropped something!” I remembered shouting, waving my hands to catch his attention as he unknowingly left it behind.

As I studied every corner of the ring, something I must have done hundreds of times by now, I rubbed my eyes and shook my head. It was made entirely of bronze, set with a large yellow stone and two smaller blue ones on either side.

It looked expensive, especially given the brilliant sparkle of the stones, unlike anything I’d ever seen before.

The ring was clearly sized for a human finger, which made one question linger; why had it fallen from a werewolf?

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

“You are still thinking about him, huh?” 

Nera Plimmyrika’s voice, my closest friend here at the university, snapped me out of my thoughts. My back straightened as if I were coming back to myself after staring into nothingness.

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

Nera was a year younger than me and in a lower grade. We first met through Celeste’s swimming lessons, where she served as one of the student coaches. Like me, she was a scholar. She was a student-athlete in swimming, while my focus was purely academic.

Leaning against the door frame, Nera rolled her eyes and crossed her arms. “Come on,” she reminded me. “I’ve told you before that you should look for experts to check whether those stones are real.”

She shrugged, speaking casually despite the seriousness of the matter.

I loosened my shoulders and rested my elbows on the edge of the table. As Nera wandered over and flopped onto my bed, a glimmering light flickered from the ring, followed by the rush of water surging out like a tidal wave.