Blood Moon Rising

•Chapter 2•

A sudden thud and bang made Seraphine cuddle his comforter in his sleep. He felt too sleepy to even get up and check the source of this sound which felt more and more nearer to him. His dream was very weird. He felt as if he was being sucked into a bottomless void, as if he was floating but also present in his room at the same time. He kept on being pushed against the bed's nightstand, he also felt his shirt a bit wet. For a moment, Seraphine felt as if he was submerged under water, he felt a salty taste in his mouth that felt too real to be a part of his dream. Oh. This must be a nightmare...one in which maybe I'm...drowning. He felt too lightheaded to even open his eyes or, to feel his surroundings or, process the blaring sirens and shouts of people. The commotion didn't stir him awake but the sudden howls of wind and tug of waves against the ship jolted him up from his trance causing his head to bang against the headrest of the bed. Only after the pain clearing away remnants of drowsiness did Seraphine realize the state of his room.

The window had been broken, water had been pouring inside through it, he was half submerged in water, there were panicked screams and loud thud of footsteps coming from outside. The ship was unsteady due to the strong wind and thunderstorm. Even the water wasn't calm anymore, it was as if it had been angered, large waves came crashing against the ship causing it to lose balance. A few parts had been destroyed which caused the ship to sink.

This was too much for Seraphine to process. Water was surrounding him. He would drown in the deep ocean. At first, he just couldn't move and stood rooted at his place but then a loud bang at the cabin's door lulled him away from his thoughts as he realised, Nino and Vikter aren't here.

Seraphine tried his best to stay calm and composed as he reached towards the door and opened it just to be greeted by the sight of no one. He could hear the screams but couldn't see where everyone was. He tried his best to scream for his friends but words just didn't come out of his mouth, instead a whimper left his lips. A splash of waves, and one of the decks were now swimming in water too. A disoriented and confused Seraphine stood there, taking in view of everything. From the dark blackened sky to the howling winds to the unstable ship and crazy waves of water trying to sink it down. It was all too sudden for him.

This is a dream right? A nightmare? This can't be true. Nino and Vikter wouldn't leave me alone like this, right? Everyone must be here somewhere I need to find...

With shaky steps and a quest to find his friends, Seraphine tried to climb the stairs that led upstairs to the rooftop restaurant in the ship. But suddenly, his steps halted as the merciless waves of the sea dragged him towards it due to a rising crash of waves. Alarms started ringing in his ears as panic now flooded his system. His entire body shook and tingled in fear as realization hit him. I'm in water. Drowning. I'll die. Is this how I'll die?. An internal tumult of fear and rising bouts of anxiety alongwith a hit to his head made Seraphine lose consciousness as he gave in to the pain. He felt losing himself to the void from his dream earlier, lose the courage to fight his fear away. He had thought of overcoming it on this trip but now, it all went in vain. He felt sinking and hitting rock bottom as his perceptions started to cascade into depth too. The feeling of being submerged under water, was just too much for him. He could've survived by overcoming his fear but...It would just take alot of energy to move now. He felt too light to even move a finger... let alone his entire body so, succumbing to it felt just about right.

So what if I die by drowning?

You were wrong Vikter...Our fears don't make us strong, they weaken us to an extent that we lose ourselves in it. We dive into our fears and welcome them to take control of us. Its only natural to give in, right?

This was Seraphine's last thought as his lungs burned and sea water rushed inside clearing away every piece of consciousness. His mind, like a canvas, cleared out and went tranquil as he finally lost every sensation and darkness swept him in its embrace.

°°°

It had been 3 days since the shipwreck incident. Many passengers had taken the life jackets and dove into the Sea in order to save themselves from the destruction of it, while others had boarded on the small boats kept on the dock for emergency purposes, no matter what precautions or life saving hacks they had applied everyone met the same fate- getting sucked into the wild tempest.

As for Seraphine he was seen drowning by Vikter who had just acquired safety jackets from one of the ship's rooms and had rescued him alongside Nino, the trio had eventually lost consciousness as they floated to the shore of an Island- it had took 3 days for them to reach there. Many passengers from the shipwreck had also been led towards the Island's shore as if someone had been waiting for them, had cleared a path out just for this unfortunate trip to go downhill and lead these passengers here.

The dark skies and thundering waves from before had calmed down into a peaceful hue of light blue as balmy rays of sunshine glittered over the rising waves. The ocean looked too serene to believe that it had been the cause of a wrecked ship.

The soft rays of sunlight fell on Seraphine's face as his entire body was still shivering in fear- his subconscious still believed him to be drowning. With heavy breaths and shivers, Seraphine curled into a ball as someone dried his body using a cloth and smoothed out his hair. He looked like a lonely deer; afraid and left as a meal for its prey to devour upon.

A soft hand caressed Seraphine's cheek as he felt the tenderness radiating from it, drawing his attention away from the looming fear of still being in water. He focused on how warm and soft the hand felt against his cheek, the way it sort of...gave him a sense of protection.

Maybe the nightmare is over... I'm not drowning anymore... I'm safe.

Seraphine thought as he tried to open his eyes but couldn't due to fatigue and weakness. He tried to push himself up but failed and instead- someone secured their arms around him. It all felt too real now. From the soft touches to the caress against his cheek to now lying in someone's arms- a dream within a dream? Or was it reality? Had he been saved? or had he fell into another disaster? Who knows.

With great difficulty he finally pried his eyes open, feeling them sting due to being in the water for too long. Seraphine steadied himself as he got up slowly and tried to sit up using his arms but something had tightly secured against his waist. Oh. It's someone and they're...holding me?

Seraphine was quick to turn around but cursed internally as he felt dizzy due to the rapid action. He hadn't eaten or drank anything so naturally he didn't have much energy to spare so this act had resulted him in getting dizzy and further losing his balance but those strong arms were there to steady him. His entire body trembled and shivered as he lost the power to fight against his sore and tensed muscles. His joints were also crusted that caused him to just stay as he was. Glued on the sand.

"Careful. You're going to cause your muscles to ache if you start moving around like that." An unfamiliar yet dark and heavy voice came from near him that caused Seraphine to blink confusedly and look back despite his already protesting body.

The sight of a smiling man with orange brown hair greeted him as he slowly blinked away the salt from his lashes and rubbed his eyes with his fists. It took a long moment for Seraphine to process the current situation he was in. He had been saved from that tumultuous thunderstorm and hurricane that had caused the shipwreck and had left him on the verge of death. But he had somehow survived and lived. He didn't see the fight of nature against mankind but he knew it had been terrible nonetheless. How could a sinking ship survive from the unforgiving sea? It couldn't. Yet somehow, Seraphine had and now he was lying safely on the shore. Before more thoughts caused him to have a headache he slowly inched away from the man's embrace and layed himself down on the sand slowly.

"Wh-where am I? What is this place?" he let out a soft whisper unable to process his voice and whether it reached the man's ears or not. But right now, he was too tired to focus on anything. He had survived. He had lived. He was drowning but now he's safe and sound on a sea shore, away from water. He can feel the warm sand reassuring him that.

But the man had heard him and replied, "You're too far away from home now and this is my Island. Welcome."

It was too late for Seraphine because he once again gave in to the weakness and fatigue as he lay there bathing under the Sun and fell asleep, giving the stranger to investigate the male.

Unbeknownst to him the man smirked as he stared at the beauty lying next to him. Seraphine looked like an angel. With dark ebony hair and soft facial features, he was reincarnation of softness and cuteness.

The man's lips parted as he sighed and stood up on his feet causing a shadow to loom above Seraphine.

Now this is going to get fun.