Nature's Guardians [Saorise]

[Syler (DELETED 9112)]

Thornside park was always beautiful this time of night. Tonight was particularly spectacular, with a brilliant moon hanging in the sky, lighting the vast swathes of greenery, the twinkle of starlight glistening in the early morning dew that alighted the brilliant blooms and the glossy fruits of the trees that lined the cobblestone walkways. It was a place of peace, a place that simply felt connected with nature, in a city that held no heed for Mother Nature, or the beauty that she offered. Concrete, steel, glass, plastic, it was a world of cold, featureless uniformity, a beauty less, colorless blob that threatened to sweep away every blade of grass, to turn every beautiful petal to ash. Mankind held no love for nature anymore.

So this place was where they had always met. This was where they had spent most of their time in the city together, here walking the pathways through the park, or barefoot through the soft grasses that swept the little dab of green in the cankerous sore that the city had become. Even in that bleak and dirty world, Saorise had been a rose, a golden gleam of beautiful sunlight that had made even the ashen world of Harper Rock seem beautiful, just by having her nearby. They had come here together, after they had heard that many others like themselves had begun to gather in the city, and upon arriving, had found just a handful of moderately gifted like themselves loosely scattered through town, and ever since they had both pondered the reason for it all. Why this place, this... disconnected blight. It all felt so out of touch, so far away from the nature from which they had always drawn their power. They had quickly learned, however. There was an evil taint here that threatened them all, the city dwelling people as well as those that were connected with the Earth. An undead horde threatened to sweep over the land and consume them all, no matter their power if they stood alone.

The vampires themselves, they had come to learn, weren’t all that bad. Some, even, were wonderful people given a tough break. It was the beasts and creatures that truly had Syler, at the least, worried beyond measure. After seeing the way the blight had touched the bears and wolves of the land around the city, and the way that those creatures had become so violent, so aggressive, so... abnormal, so evil, he had seen why it was important that they be here. They had to keep these things in check, they had to ensure that none advanced into the surrounding woodlands, to be sure that this taint didn’t spread. They had to learn as they could about this rip in what they called the veil, and to see to it that it remained closed.

Tonight had been slated for another walk in the park, a few moments alone with one another after a long day of work, but Syler had heard the telltale murmurs of the horrible sounds that decried another gathering of the beasts. It all could wait, he supposed, but for how long? He sighed, as he glanced at his watch. He was early, so he could surprise the tiny blonde that he honestly considered himself lucky to even know, much less to have dated for such a good, pleasant while. He stood with his back against a broad maple tree, his hand tucked behind his leg clutching at the bouquet that he had collected of the flowers in bloom, their job of spreading their seed already finished for the year, their days numbered before the autumn reaped their beauty. He knew that she would appreciate that they had seen one final purpose, even after their lives had already been lived to the fullest. He smiled, and let his head fall back against the trunk of the tree. She’ll be along soon.