Chapter 4: Visiting the Family and the Revelation
The young woman froze, her eyes, identical to Megan's, fixed on Duncan with a mixture of surprise, alertness, and a touch of… hostility?
"Megan," the girl said in the doorway, alarmed, without taking her eyes off Duncan. "Who is this person? What are they doing here? How did they get here? Answer me, sister, did they do anything to you?"
Megan didn't answer and walked past her, gently pushing Duncan inside.
"There, there, Mia, don't get so worked up. Could you call Mom so she can see him? Please."
Megan's sister, Mia, put a hand to her forehead.
"Ugh, you're giving me such a headache," she sighed, resignedly entering the house. "Come on in," Megan said to Duncan. "Me inside." In a calm tone,
Mia led them through a spacious, warm foyer, furnished with solid wood furniture and thick rugs, to a cozy living room where a fireplace was lit.
"Wait here," Mia ordered, slightly annoyed by her sister, then shot her one last warning glance before disappearing upstairs.
Duncan slumped onto a leather sofa, feeling a little overwhelmed. Megan sat beside him, taking his hand again, as if it were the most natural thing in the world.
"Don't worry," she murmured. "My mom will understand everything when she sees you."
A few long minutes passed. Duncan heard footsteps coming down the stairs. They weren't Mia's quick, light steps. They were slow and steady. Megan stood up, pulling Duncan to his feet as well.
Then they entered the living room.
Lyra went first, her brow still furrowed. Behind her, Megan smiled nervously. And behind them…
Duncan felt the air leave his lungs.
The woman who entered was, without a doubt, the mother. The resemblance was unmistakable in the structure of her face, in the curve of her lips. But that's where the similarities with her daughters ended. Her hair was a cascade of long, brown curls that fell over her shoulders and down her back. Her eyes weren't amber, but a deep, clear blue, like the sky at a winter dawn. And they observed Duncan with a penetrating, analytical intelligence that made him feel completely exposed.
Not only that. While Mia and Megan were beautiful in a youthful and wild way, their mother possessed a mature, powerful, and… overwhelming beauty. She wore black leggings and a loose-fitting workout top that, nevertheless, couldn't conceal the spectacular curves of her body. The famous "H-cup" wasn't an exaggeration; it was a simple natural fact that dominated the landscape of her torso. Every movement, every breath, was an affirmation of a physical presence as intense as the gaze of her blue eyes.
Duncan felt a surge of purely instinctive attraction, immediately followed by a wave of embarrassment and confusion. He was in the home of complete strangers who were talking about marking and scents, facing a woman who seemed to have stepped out of a dream… or a very attractive nightmare.
The woman crossed her arms under her breasts, a gesture that further accentuated her curves, and studied Duncan in silence for what seemed like an eternity. The crackling of the fire was the only sound in the room.
Finally, she spoke. Her voice was soft, melodious, yet imbued with an authority that didn't need to be raised.
"Megan," she said, without taking her blue eyes off Duncan. "Can you explain why your mark is this... human? Do you know very well what that means for you and your sister... in our race? And why she smells so good," she said, a very sensual tone escaping her lips. Realizing what she'd said, she quickly changed her words: "Different." I mean, different.
Megan, slightly amused by what her mother said, smiled tenderly, while Mia was a little surprised. She couldn't believe how her mother had let herself get carried away. She, on the other hand, only felt a faint connection with him, which she didn't understand. She looked at her sister and thought that this was because of her.
The tension in the air was palpable, but for Duncan, it was heavier than for the others. His heart pounded, expectant of what Megan and Mia's mother was about to say next.
After clearing her throat gracefully, she extended her hand with a serene smile.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Duncan. I'm Elena Florentino, and these are my most precious treasures," she said, gesturing toward her daughters. "Megan Florentino and Lyra Florentino. Aren't they beautiful? They don't look like me, do they? They only got their hair color from their father. Thank goodness, he was very… wild." Although Megan sometimes acts like him, and I have to tell her off for it.
"Mom, in front of Duncan," Megan said, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment.
"Okay, honey, I'm sorry. I got a little sidetracked," Elena admitted, composing herself. "Well, as you can probably tell, we're not your average family."
"So, what would the concept be?" Mia asked playfully from behind. "Normal?"
"Young lady! I know what you're doing. You'd better stop," Elena scolded, though a smile played on her lips.
Megan chimed in, impatient.
"Can you two stop already? We need to get this over with."
After taking a moment to compose herself, Elena turned back to Duncan, her gaze now intense and serious.
"Tell me, Duncan… have you ever thought that supernatural creatures actually exist and are among us?"
Duncan blinked, incredulous at what he had just heard.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, you know… in this town, haven't you heard about sightings of creatures and strange things?" Elena continued, her voice taking on a narrative tone. "Just to give you a better idea, I'll tell you a story. Years ago, there were beings with powers that are now just myths for many. All those creatures lived in constant warfare, though they still do, just not in plain sight. As they say, times change, but war always remains. In their struggle, many of them died. Some were warriors so powerful that nuclear bombs were like an insect bite to them." Those were very dangerous times, when one had to walk carefully.
She paused dramatically before continuing.
"Among those wars, the most dominant races were, without a doubt, those you know as pure werewolves. They had an army of… them. They were very prolific at breeding."
"How do you know that?" Duncan asked, fascinated and confused at the same time.
Elena laughed, a soft, mysterious sound.
"Haha, believe me, I know. Hehe."
"Mom, don't get distracted. Continue with the story," Mia urged.
"Oh, okay, okay!" Elena said, getting back on track. "So, where was I?"
Megan raised her little hand, like a diligent student.
"That they were really good at…?"
"Okay, thanks, honey!" Elena interrupted quickly, as Megan giggled. "Yes, I was getting there. They were good... no, powerful. They didn't just have numbers on their side; each one of them could make a platoon of warriors tremble. In their base form, they could lift buses. In their wolf form, their abilities multiplied a hundredfold. They were complete monsters."
"Those who fought against them the most," he continued, "were those bloodsuckers, or as they're called nowadays, vampires. With their speed and strength, they were no worse than wolves in their base form, and in their vampiric form, they were very dangerous. Even so, they feared the bite of wolves, since that would cause them excruciating pain from their venom."
"Then," he added, "there were wizards and witches and many other species."
At that moment, Duncan raised his hand, still in student mode.
"Wizards and witches… aren't they the same thing?"
Elena answered him patiently.
"No, darling, they're different. They don't even get along with each other."
She sighed wearily, as if the topic were vast and complex.
"But that's a story for another time, my boy. Well, where was I again? Oh, yes!" The mages were humans who, through studies of the *White Encode*, were able to develop a generation of magically gifted individuals. In the case of the warlocks, it was similar, except they chose the dark side and, through that, created the *Black Encode*, the counterpart to the original, only this one was much more dangerous. After that, many types of magic and abilities were developed for humans, even sacred abilities of the gods, to avoid extinction at the hands of the dominant races.
"Mom, why don't you teach him a little of your magic so he can understand better?" Megan said to her mother without a hint of hesitation in front of Duncan.
Elena paused one last time, her gaze fixed on Duncan, assessing his reaction. The room fell silent, heavy with the weight of the story that had just been revealed.
The word "magic" echoed through the room like thunder on a clear day. Duncan blinked, certain he'd misheard.
"M...magic?" he repeated, incredulous, staring at Megan as if she'd just declared the earth flat.
Megan turned to him, her amber eyes filled with sincere pleading. She took both his hands in hers, her touch warm and firm.
"Trust me," she whispered, making a face so tender, so vulnerable, that it shattered any resistance Duncan might have had. Her expression was that of a puppy begging to be believed in the most outlandish story in the world.
Duncan felt all logic, skepticism, and fear melt away under that gaze. He sighed, defeated, his shoulders slumping.
"Okay," he conceded, his voice barely a whisper. "Okay."
The instant she nodded, Megan's mother, who had been watching them with her piercing blue eyes, took an almost imperceptible step back. A faint light flickered from her eyes, and her hands jerked across her body, as if a subtle electric current had passed through the air.
"Fascinating," she murmured to herself, her analytical gaze settling on Duncan with renewed intensity. Then, her expression turned urgent. She approached them with quick, purposeful steps. "Quick, take off your shirt."
Duncan was stunned, his brain struggling to process the command.
"S-excuse me?" he managed to stammer, heat rising to his face.
But the woman didn't give him time to react. With an elegant, almost nonchalant gesture, she made a slight circular motion in the air.
*Phew!*
There was no sound, but suddenly, Duncan felt a strange coolness on his skin. He looked down and a stifled gasp escaped him. His T-shirt and jeans had completely disappeared, leaving him standing in the middle of the room wearing nothing but his black boxer shorts. The clothes had simply vanished, without a trace, as if they had never been there.
"W-what... what just happened?" he stammered, instinctively crossing his arms over his bare torso, feeling more vulnerable than ever.
"You'll find out soon enough, don't worry," Megan's mother said, her voice calm but unyielding. She approached him, and Duncan gasped. She began to examine him, not with her hands, but with her gaze. Her blue eyes seemed to scan him, tracing the contours of his shoulders, his chest, his arms. She lingered for a moment on a small scar on his side, then on the outline of his somewhat skeletal body—not exaggerated, but it was obvious the word "exercise" wasn't in his vocabulary. Just because she looked at his physique wasn't to judge him; in fact, she didn't care at all. Her expression was that of a scientist studying a rare specimen.
After what felt like an eternity to Duncan, she walked away. A sigh, heavy with what seemed like… approval, escaped his lips. He turned to Megan, and a genuine, warm, and proud smile lit up his face.
"Fascinating, daughter. You've brought a good man into the house."
Megan jumped slightly, her joy overflowing.
"I knew it! Hehe," she said, casting a triumphant glance at Duncan, who could only stand there, confused, half-naked, and completely bewildered.
End of chapter…