The morning sun filtered through the thin cotton curtains, casting golden streaks across Damon's bedroom wall. Today was the day he was finally leaving for college.
His room was already half-empty. Clothes folded into a worn duffel bag, books carefully packed, and the necklace his grandmother gave him the one with the odd silver claw hung around his neck like a second skin.
"Damon," came a soft knock.
His grandmother peeked in, her eyes glistening though her smile tried to hide it.
"You're really going," she said, voice trembling slightly.
Damon nodded, standing tall even though his heart was a little heavier than he expected.
"Yeah, Grandma. It's time."
She stepped into the room, holding a small paper-wrapped bundle. "Take this. Dried herbs and… something else. Just keep it in your drawer, eh?"
He chuckled. "Herbs? Grandma, I'm going to study, not brew potions."
She gave him a knowing look. "You never know when you'll need what you don't understand yet."
Damon kissed her forehead. "I'll call every weekend."
As he stepped outside with his bag slung over his shoulder, a small crowd had already gathered in front of the house. Mrs. Pearls from next door handed him a box of chocolate while Mr. Felix the barber shouted, "Don't forget where you came from, boy!"
Even the usually grumpy shopkeeper waved with a smile. Damon's face lit up he was loved here.
But as he looked down the street toward the waiting bus, a chill ran down his spine. It wasn't fear. It was something else. Something old. Something calling.
Grandma watched him with an unreadable expression. As he turned to hug her one last time, she whispered near his ear, "They've been waiting for you."
Damon froze, but she smiled and waved him off like nothing had been said.
He boarded the bus.
And as the engine roared to life, he watched his home disappear behind him, unaware that the road ahead would awaken something deep inside him something beyond supernatural.
The engine coughed to life, and the old, blue college bus rattled as it pulled away from the familiar street Damon had known all his life. He sat by the window, his forehead lightly resting against the cool glass, watching his grandmother and neighbors wave as their figures slowly disappeared behind a cloud of dust.
As the bus turned the final bend out of the community, Damon realized this was it. He was truly leaving home.
The journey began slowly, with the bus navigating through rough, red earth roads dotted with potholes and goats crossing without a care in the world. The streets of his hometown faded behind him, replaced by a stretch of open land and trees that lined the road like watchful giants.
The wind blew softly through the crack in the window, carrying with it the dry scent of dust, roasted corn, and far-off burning firewood. Damon leaned back in his seat, his bag tucked between his legs, and let his mind drift.
Oceanic College…
Just saying the name in his head gave him a strange mix of excitement and nerves.
He had seen pictures online tall buildings, white-tiled lecture halls, fountains, a big library. It looked modern, busy, full of life. The kind of place where people found themselves… or lost themselves.
Maybe I'll finally figure out what's wrong with me, Damon thought.
Or maybe, what's different about me.
He didn't expect to become popular, or even noticed but he hoped to at least blend in. No more whispers behind his back about how his eyes changed color in the dark. No more old women calling him "half-spirit" under their breath. Here, nobody knew him. He could be normal.
But what even was normal?
The bus climbed a hill, passing through a thick stretch of forest that seemed to cast a sudden shadow over the road. The air grew cooler, heavier. Damon looked out the window and caught a flicker of movement between the trees something low to the ground, fast, with glowing eyes.
He blinked. Nothing. Just thick trees and rustling leaves.
The woman beside him shifted, clutching her rosary tighter. She must have felt something too.
Damon swallowed hard and looked straight ahead.
The rest of the journey passed in waves sleep, heat, jolts from potholes, brief stops in roadside towns where women sold gala and bottles of Coke through the bus window. But through it all, one thing stayed the same: that tight pull in his chest. Like something was calling him forward, tugging him closer to a fate he didn't understand.
And then after nearly six hours of travel the city opened up before him.
Bustling roads, blaring horns, tall buildings, and clouds of smoke. The noise of it all was overwhelming. Damon sat up straighter. The driver took a turn onto a long, tree-lined street with trimmed hedges and a polished sign ahead.
OCEANIC COLLEGE.
The gate was enormous black iron with silver edges, and a large crest at the top: a wave crashing over a full moon. Damon's heart skipped.
It looked exactly like the sketch from his dream two weeks ago.
The bus rolled to a stop. Students were already everywhere, dragging boxes, greeting friends, taking selfies. Damon stepped down from the bus, his feet touching the school grounds for the first time.
The breeze shifted.
Something ancient stirred inside him.
This wasn't just a new chapter.
It was the beginning of everything.