THE SEED

The enormous silver gates flashed across Tagin's eyes, sending pain through them, causing his brows to furrow as he winced in pain.

“Mmmm…” The blurry figures before him stared at him with so much confusion.

"Please…please… Get it out of me," Tagin said before finally blacking out.

"No way we're letting him inside the gates," one soldier said, slowly backing away.

"We can't leave him here, he needs our help."

His stomach suddenly lurched inward, then bulged outward as though something beneath it had slammed against the skin, making the soldiers freeze mid-way between their conversations.

For more than two minutes they remained speechless as they exchanged glances. One of them finally spoke up, breaking the silence.

"What the fuck, man. There's no way we're letting him through these gates."

"He needs help, it's probably just a strange sickness."

"He's a vampire, man! King Snow would have our heads."

"Have you forgotten the law that says anyone who comes needy at the gates: our gates are opened to them? Who's breaking the law here?" He said, turning to the rest of the soldiers. "Now let's take this man inside and give him the help he needs."

They huddled around him as they lifted him up.

Tagin's eyelids flickered slowly as he could see himself being chased by the monster again, as it swallowed him slowly but painfully.

"No…No, let me live," he said as his head nudged side to side.

"Arrr," he jumped up as he tried to scurry away. But the weight on his abdomen had doubled in mass, making him still and forcing his back against the bed.

His eyes rested on his stomach, his throat became drier as he felt the crawl underneath his skin. "Oh God!" Tears rolled down his eyes.

"Easy, you're safe here." A voice called out.

Tagin slowly raised his head as his eyes hovered from side to side. Seeing he was surrounded by Healers: a few young, few middle aged, and a less percentage of them older. Where he lay he could hear rambling outside, meaning there were more.

"I have never seen such before!" a healer confessed.

"Neither have I," another said, rubbing his bald head.

"Could it be that his kidneys are failing, causing fluid retention in his bowels?" as speculations filled the room.

"Here," one healer said, giving Tagin a very harsh bowl of mixed herbs.

"Oh, Maester Frant is here! He definitely can treat it," one of the healers said.

"What do you think it is, Maester Frant?"

"It is Bowel Canis. I'm giving him a special moon-herb soup, blessed by the moon herself."

"I thought moon herbs were for wolves?" a younger lad whispered to his friend.

"Isn't he a vampire?" another whispered.

"He is! But I'm pretty sure Maester Frant knows what he is doing," they both nodded in affirmation.

Tagin coughed violently, digging his fingers into his neck as he gagged and vomited blood after taking the moon herbs. 

His eyes rolled backward until his pupils were no longer visible. Maester Frant stumbled a step backwards as an unusual growl escaped Tagin's throat. His body twisted violently. Maester Frant's face drained of color as he watched in horror.

Silence fell upon the room for a moment as they were still in awe.

"This definitely looks like constipation," a younger healer suggested.

"Oh shut your mouth, you dumb boy! Don't you see Maester Frant has already given the diagnosis?" an older healer ordered. "Who trained you?" He asked, staring intently at the young lad with so much disgust.

"Maester Phelisimo trained me, Maester."

"What! I knew it," he said, clenching his fist. "That quack, procreating more of his kin." Smacking his hand across his face, he spat in disgust.

"What did you just call me?" Phelisimo, who happened to be standing by the corner, questioned as he walked in with so much anger.

"You know what? You're not just a quack! You're a fool, training foolish students across the realms." The older healer shot back at Phelisimo.

Phelisimo, about to respond, suddenly froze on the spot. The other healers did the same

It was Tagin.

A slow ripple moved beneath his skin, traveling from one side of his abdomen to the other, as a hard lump pushed beneath his skin and slowly moved across his stomach before disappearing.

"Oh God," a younger healer blurted out before gagging "Urrgh—ugh!" as he threw up.

"Don't do that in front of the patient, you'll scare the baby," another said.

"I'm…I'm not pregnant," Tagin managed to finally speak as his breaths grew ragged rapidly sending movements under his skin.

"If you're not pregnant then what are you?" The youngest healer in the room curiously asked.

"Someone get this Phelisimo's students out of here," the older healer spoke out.

"I…I…I don't know," Tagin said, breaking into tears. "Water… I need water," he slowly whispered.

"Glrrrkk"...Glrrrkk… Everyone froze hearing the unusual sounds.

"No, don't give him water," Phelisimo said.

"Oh shut up, what do you possibly know about water?"

"Are you mad? He'll burst if you do, don't you see!" Phelisimo shouted back.

They all suddenly stood erect.

"Oh, Great Maester Gryfield!" The rest of the healers chorused, bowing their heads in unison.

"Clack…Clack…" Each strike of the cane against the stone floor grew louder as he walked in, slowly but steady.

Standing in front of Tagin, he asked: "What is your name, boy?"

"Ta…Ta…gin…" he managed to say as he shuddered and clenched his teeth, giving Gryfield enough time to look into his mouth and watch the movements beneath his skin.

The old healer heaved a sigh as his face remained unsteady, he staggered a few steps backwards.

Seeing the colors drain from Gryfield's face they all stood confused.

"What seems to be the problem, Maester?"

A large gulp was heard as he swallowed. "He needs to be taken back into the forest. Far away from here!" He shouted.

"Why, Maester?"

"It's THE SEED!"

They all stared at themselves in confusion.

"What seed?"

Looking at everyone in the room he hesitated as sweat ran down his temples and his old limbs felt too weak to carry his body.

"THE SEED OF VYRE."

"Vyre?" The older healers shouted in disbelief, as the younger healers questioned.

"Impossible!" One shouted. "It…It… can't be. But how? They were all eliminated centuries ago. Not one survived since the extinction of hybrids."

"I need to get out of here," a healer said, pushing his way out of the room, making the young lads restless as panic and confusion rested on their faces.

"What is Vyre, the seed, what does it mean?"

"It's a creature that existed before our fathers. Legends say it either feeds on your core if

you're weak… And plants its seed inside of you if your core is strong." 

One of the Healer's said as he watched their faces turn white.