300 Days With The Alpha Beta Triplets
WASTE LAND

THIRD PERSON POV:

Everyone, including Bella, believed Hazel told her off after the encounter, but that wasn't the case. Hazel only said

that to make the vampires trust Bella further. Deep down, she cared about her friend, and she hadn't stopped digging into the lores and myths of the vampires. She believed in Bella, but she was scared Bella would get herself killed.

Today, she was seated in front of her laptop, doing intensive research on vampires. Beside her were a lot of history books she found in the library, and the ones she had to steal. When the internet wouldn't give her any clue about the release of the vampire king, she groaned, lying back on the bed.

She shut her eyes, feeling defeated, then suddenly remembered her spell book was supposed to guide her. Giving off a sigh, she sat up to try what her mind was telling her.

"Oh, spirit of the great witches, grant me access to the knowledge that I seek," she said, then waited for a moment as a cool breeze swirled around her room. One book beside her flipped open, and her eyes widened as she stared at a map in view.

She looked carefully at the map, seeing it lead to some ancient city. Sighing deeply, she knew she had to get going. The triplets had been crossed with Bella, and she knew they would discourage her from going.

She pushed herself up from the bed, then walked to her closet to grab her backpack. She packed her spell book and tore out the page with the map. Ever since Bella told her how the vampires opened portals seamlessly, she had been practicing because she felt useless, knowing they practiced better magic than she did.

With her eyes shut, she tried to channel her energy as her book instructed. She focused her mind on the drawings on the map, trying to open a straight portal that didn't involve her falling into free space. Shortly, she opened her eyes to see the portal open in front of her. Examining it, the energy felt right, so she walked forward and stepped into it. To her greatest surprise, she walked out in front of a cave in the middle of nowhere. Looking around, she felt her blood pressure spike because all she saw was a dry land with skulls scattered around. The place was a wasteland. She pulled out the map, looking at it again to confirm she wasn't in any of the packs, but at the far end of the Thorne Pack.

"It was probably where the vampires found refuge," she said to herself as she began to walk with no direction in the vast area of land.

She was scared, but she tried to put on a brave face since it was still daytime. The place was creepy as hell, and there were more skulls than sand, which made her imagine the level of brutality during the war.

For a moment, her effort seemed futile, and she was about to give up until she found a cave in the middle of nowhere. As she neared the cave, her heart thumped harder in her chest.

"This is my destiny, so I have to be brave and save people. If Bella can walk through the mouth of vampires unscathed, then I can do this," she said, trying to ground herself as she made it to the cave.

In no time, she stood at the entrance. She stopped to take out her phone and turned on the flashlight, pointing it at the entrance of the cave. Unlike the other caves she had been in, this one was dry. There wasn't even a trace of water or anything. Taking a deep breath, she made her way into the cave, which had the smell of incense. She was quick to shut her nose as she went deeper, pointing her torch at the stone walls, which were dry as well.

Her heart hammered badly in her chest, causing her to momentarily turn back, but each time, she either saw a rat or a spider. Finally, she made it to the heart of the cave, where she saw a pillar in the middle of the room. Walking towards it, she stared at the dusty surface, clearing it to reveal a hand symbol. She placed her hands on it, but nothing happened. She waited for a while, took her hands off, then placed them back, but nothing happened.

When she was tired, she removed her hands, then flashed her torchlight around the room where she saw symbols engraved on the walls. She made her way towards the stone walls, looking at the symbols, which resembled information, but she couldn't read them.

She knew she could crack the code with the right tools. So she took pictures of the images and writings she couldn't understand. When she was done, she walked back to the pillar-like material, placing her hands on it. This time, the pillar sank into the ground, and she suddenly found herself standing outside the cave.

To her greatest surprise, she turned to see that the entrance of the cave was now sealed.

"What the hell just happened?" she questioned herself, but there was no one to answer her. Suddenly, the sky rumbled, and out of nowhere, a heavy downpour began. That was when it became clear that whoever or whatever guarded the cave didn't want her there.

She didn't need to be told twice to open a portal. In a few seconds, she returned to her dorm room, then she pushed off her backpack, taking out her phone. She tried to search for ancient languages on her laptop and remained there for hours with no breakthrough.

Hazel didn't realize she had stayed up all night trying to decipher the language until she shut her eyes to sleep, and the morning alarm for school went off, jolting her awake. The shock almost caused her to kick her laptop off the bed. Giving a sigh, she shut her eyes again, trying to get more rest. After about thirty minutes, she pulled herself out of bed and rushed to the bathroom to take a bath.

While in the shower, her mind ran through the possibilities of cracking the code. Her spell book was just a pointer, and it had already given her what she needed. She just had to put in more effort.

"Why am I even living this life?" she questioned herself as the cool water fell on her skin, washing away the soap on her body. In no time, she was done showering, then she stepped out of the bathroom. Her mind remained on the language, and she would stare at the image on her phone occasionally.

After a while, she gave up, hissing aloud and slumping onto her bed as she stared at her shoes. Realizing she was out of time, she hurriedly got ready and left for classes, with her eyes struggling to stay open the entire day. As Hazel sat in class, she prayed for time to pass quickly so she could go back and rest before continuing her search. "Hazel, would you help me collect the assignments?" Ms. Polly asked, jolting Hazel back to reality as her head nearly rolled backward in exhaustion.

"Ye... yes," she said, then got to her feet at once, making rounds in the class to gather the assignments.

There was one more class after this before the end of school, but she was too tired to sit through it. She was smart enough to take her bag as she gathered the assignments, then followed Ms. Polly to her office.

Upon arriving, Hazel dropped the assignments on the desk. Just as if the universe knew her needs, her eyes caught sight of one of the books stacked on Ms. Polly's table.

"A Text on Ancient Languages."

Hazel's eyes widened, and she knew she had to have that text. Her gut told her everything she needed was in it, but she wouldn't know for sure unless she had her hands on it. At that moment, someone knocked on the door, and Ms. Polly walked away to attend to them.

Taking the opportunity, Hazel carefully swiped the book from the stack, stuffing it into her bag. She turned to see Ms. Polly still occupied at the door and waited patiently. When she couldn't wait any longer, she walked up to Ms. Polly and the person at the door.

"Excuse me, ma'am, I need to get to class," Hazel said in a small tone, and Ms. Polly gave way for her to pass.