XAVIER

Chapter One

                                                                                Xavier's POV

I looked up at the night sky as I walked through the woods, I thought of all the stories my father used to tell me about the stars, and the constellations, and it seemed sad that I couldn't remember a single one of them. Although there is one that I know, it's my favorite. It's called Orion's Belt, and I think Orion is known as a hunter, but I'm not sure of what. It's funny to think that, because in a way I'm a hunter, too, only I hunt to survive. I hunt to live. If I didn't hunt and believe me sometimes I don't want to, but If I didn't hunt, I would die.

I continued walking deeper into the woods, looking for my next hunt, hoping I could find something quick and easy to catch for a peaceful night. You see I'm, not just any hunter. I hunt humans. Well, at least I used to. When I first became one of them, and by them, I mean a Vampire. I would hunt every day and every night. I couldn't control it, at first I wasn't able to stop myself. The very scent of human blood made me burn inside with hunger. I left trails of bodies all through Manhattan, Brooklyn, New York, Los Angeles, all through the United States. Until one day, someone began to catch on. Then, It wasn't just me who was the hunter. I became the hunted. So I fled, I left town with nothing and decided to head North. On my way, I met a few others who were just like me, I met two guys names Jaxton and Ryson in a small pub one night. When I met them, I thought they were just normal guys. Until I realized I didn't have the urge to bite through their necks. I started to catch on throughout the night to the jokes they were making, and the way they were talking to the women in the bar.

Before I did anything irrational, I wanted to be sure of my theory. I got up from my chair and walked over to a women sitting in the corner of the bar who was all alone and had asked her if she was looking for some company, and, of course, she was. I sat down with her for a bit and talked while I held back my urge to rip her neck open. Every second I sat there was excruciatingly painful and it was even harder to talk when all I could hear was the blood pumping through her veins, the smell of human blood overpowering her floral perfume, but instead of doing what I wanted to do, I looked into her eyes and asked her to remain calm for me and she obliged. I took out my small pocket knife from my left jean pocket and slit the tip of her index finger open on her right hand and carefully squeezed it, dripping blood into my glass of whiskey... I took her finger into my mouth and licked the remainder of the blood off quickly, hoping no one would notice my face change. Her blood was sweet, and I could feel my entire body aching for more. I knew I couldn't risk it, not now, not while I was here or while I was being hunted. It took every ounce of me to back away from her and head back to the table where Jaxton and Ryson continued their riveting conversation. I brought my glass of whiskey over to them and placed it on the table in front of Ryson.

"Here ya go, looked like you needed a refill, my friend," I said as I sat down in my chair across from him.

"You think I'm an i***t?" He asked and he pushed the glass across the table back to me. "I can smell the blood you slipped into my drink from across the room!" His tone was becoming angrier now.

Jaxton gave his brother a look of anger as he nudged his arm.

"Back off Jaxton, clearly this guy knows something." Ryson snapped back.

"Xavier, who are you?" Jaxton asked calmly. Although, I could tell he was angry. I could feel the tension; he was getting ready to fight for his life at any second.

"I’m exactly like you," I stated.

"How so?" Ryson asked. "What are you saying?"

I picked up the glass of whiskey and chugged it back in one swift movement. I could feel my eyes change to the dark, red color they always change to when I drink blood, as the veins appeared beneath them trailing down my cheeks on my face.

Jaxton stood up from his seat, leaving a 20 dollar bill on the table. "Follow me." He said. "Now!"

I got up and followed him and Ryson outside, around the back of the old brick building, that was slightly dilapidated. A crooked sign hung on the side of the building, the paper staring to fold off. The sign just barely read "Jerry's Pub". Once we walked around back it brought us out to a small forest of trees, there was no street lights or any light source at all but I could see just fine. Jaxton and Ryson sped off into the woods, quicker then I could ever go. But I followed behind them, soon I caught up and they finally came to a stop.

" I can hear your thoughts, Xavier. So why don't you tell Ryson here what's going on." Jaxton said once he spun around to face me.

I was completely shocked that Jaxton had the ability to read thoughts, I didn't understand how he, someone who was a Vampire just like me could have a different talent than me. I thought we were all the same, but Ryson and Jaxton proved me wrong on many occasions later in life. This night, the night we met after I followed them through the woods they let me explain to them what had happened in the city, and how I was being hunted and needed to leave. They decided to come with me, and we left together to find somewhere safe for people like us to survive. Jaxton was the oldest of us all, he had been turned when he was 20 years old back in 1895 in Portland with his younger brother Ryson being turned only two years after. To this day, they have both stuck with me. They have become my family and they have taught me how to control my hunger and myself. We have been trying for years to get strictly on an animal-based diet, and now I've finally come to terms with it. Out here it became easy, there are so much wildlife and so little people, and finally, we had found somewhere safe for us to be. Somewhere, where we can roam free at night without having to worry about being caught, without worrying about someone hearing us. We are now staying in a small town called Port Alice, BC.

As I continue my hunt through the woods, I finally see a small deer just a little way up ahead of me. When suddenly the smell of fresh human blood hits me and my attention begins to seek elsewhere. I heard a loud crash off in the distance, about 20 yards. When I turned into a Vampire, the first thing I noticed was my impeccable sense of hearing kick in. I could hear everything and everyone, any kind of noise sounded as if it was directly in front of me. I could overhear many conversations and pick up on the tiniest of noises, like bugs for example. The sound they make when crawling, the sound their wings make when flying. If I focused really hard, I could hear all of these things. At first, it was amazing, then quickly it became a burden and I have tuned it out since. But every now and then, If I want to I listen. I mostly eavesdrop on conversations, listen in on the ladies talking about me in the bars. But tonight I picked up on the sound of glass shattering, and I became quickly interested in finding out where it came from.

I've never noticed anyone living nearby before out here in the woods, and if there was then they were usually very quiet. So to hear a noise coming from not too far away was definitely interesting. I followed the direction I heard the noise come from, I swiftly maneuvered myself through the trees and branches of the forest and made my way quickly down the hill. At the bottom of the hill sat a small cabin, made of brown wood. The front had two large, glass windows which one of them looks as though it has now been shattered. A small black car was parked on the road across from the house, its four-way lights were flashing the dark of the night. The only lights on the street. The house was dark, but I could see rustling movement coming from inside when suddenly a woman's voice came from inside, a voice filled with fear. I know that sound, the sound of a voice filled with fear, oh how I've heard it so many times before.

I could hear her calling for help from inside. She was screaming now, in pain. I could smell the human blood even stronger now. I wasn’t sure if it was the blood drawing me in closer to the house, or the women who needed help calling from inside. But whatever it was, I was now standing on the front steps of the house, outside the door, ready to burst in.