14 Pristine

For the next couple of days Hayden didn't spot Nathaniel at all. In his class or anywhere around the campus. He started to get worried whether or not he should do something about it because he knew that a living dead guy was just around the corner, and even if Hayden wasn't an impulsive hunter, allowing Conrad to roam about was still a threat to his community.

One of the things that made him a true hunter was an oath to protect the community from dangerous beings. He didn't ever take that oath seriously, mainly because he had killed any and every supernatural being in his display, but right now he was being tested by not one but two supernatural beings. There was a matter of chance, who was more dangerous. 

Hayden had weighed his pros and cons about associating with Nathaniel and even he had to admit that at this moment, with everything going on that might be the best idea, no matter how much it went against his values. But then again, Nathaniel had disappeared so there was no way of contacting him.

One day after his class, Hayden went to the dormitory section of the campus, hoping to spot Nathaniel in case he was still there. He did try to disguise himself by wearing jeans and all instead of his regular office attire to look more young and so that he could blend in with the crowd, but that just made the whole situation more awkward when he actually did run into some of his students.

Alas he didn't find Nathaniel, but thanks to his position on the board, he managed to find the room Nathaniel was allotted. Hayden walked to that room. He hesitated a moment before turning the doorknob. His room number was 66 which made it considerably easy to find.

Hayden was surprised to see it open. As he walked in he saw the entire room was empty, as if no one even moved in. Everything seemed desolate, except the markings on the walls drawn in black ink, which resembled some sort of runes. 

Hayden stared at them for a whole minute before deciding to take some pictures of the runes. He didn't have any idea what they stood for, but he had hoped that he'd figure it out once he got to some study regarding them. He inspected the room with much vigilance and looked for any other clues that might be hidden in places like inside the drawer and/ or on the cupboard wall inside.

He looked meticulously and didn't leave any corner go uninspected or any stones unturned, but alas these runes were the only things he could gather. Going back, he started to dig in the ancestral books (copy cause originals were destroyed when he was young) and looked through the history of the runes and their meaning.

Runes were mostly a high level magic reserved only for greater purposes be it for good and evil. Among them he saw one of the runes drawn in the wall and upon reading it realised that it's a part of magic that can summon anyone be it living dead or anyone. Could this be the process of how Conrad was brought back? He wondered.

Upon searching further, he found other runes resembling the same and pretty soon he figured out that it was to create a spectral form. Spectral form, even though it isn't permanent, was used to make a non-visible entity visible. The more he read the more he was certain that these runes were the ones that were used to bring Conrad back. 

Apparently, necromancy (bringing back the dead) was a high level magic skill, and thus meticulous and thorough combination of these were required to achieve what Conrad's disciple did. Which meant, even though Conrad was powerful, the witches or warlocks that brought him back weren't a joke either.

No matter what he found, the one thing he couldn't make out was how to counter these runes. No matter what, there wasn't any way visible to him at the moment. As Hayden closed the book to put it back on the shelf something hit him. Why did Nathaniel leave them in plain sight, in his assigned room when everything else was empty? Was he trying to lead Hayden on purpose without giving too much away? Hayden wondered.

He sat down and wondered how on earth were he to contact Nathaniel if required. He was amidst his thinking when there was a knock on his door. Getting up he headed down to the main door and was surprised to see none other than Nathaniel standing there with a smirk. "What are you doing here?" 

"I am here to see you." Nathaniel shrugged. "Isn't that obvious?"

"And why is that"? Hayden challenged. 

"Well, because you went to see me in my dorm." Nathaniel smirked. "Your presence in my room was pretty darn clear as soon as I stepped in." He leaned in the door, but did not step in. 

"I see." Hayden raised an eyebrow, "Let me grab my coat and we can talk".

"Or, you could just invite me in". Nathaniel shrugged.

"What is it? My first day as a hunter? I am not that naive. I may not have been able to keep you out of my classroom, but I will keep you out of my house." Hayden snapped.

"Fair enough." Nathaniel tilted his face, hiding his disappointment. He was keen on seeing the interiors of the professor's house, most importantly he wanted to get to know more about the professor.

A whole minute later Hayden stepped out of his house with a giant shrug and asked "So, I saw what you put on the walls. What I don't understand is why you put them on the walls". Hayden wondered. 

"I wanted you to get the message". Nathaniel shrugged. "In case you showed up because you wanted to take me up on my offer?" He added.

"And what if someone else had walked in?" Hayden asked.

"Then they could interpret the runes however they wanted. It's not really my problem." Nathaniel shrugged casually. "So, you want to help me or not?"

"Why do you even want me involved?" Asked Hayden. "Clearly you do better research than me. You found these runes when I could barely find anything about Conrad."

"I know them because I know Conrad. What you're looking for in the books is something I have lived." Nathaniel explained. "However, as a hunter you have good skills. I mean you found Conrad before me on the day of his resurrection". Nathaniel pointed out.

"A hunter's instincts" noted Hayden. 

"Precisely. And I could do some right now, for this very purpose." Nathaniel nodded.

"You need me to find Conrad for you?" Hunter asked.

"No, I can find him myself if required. I need you to find me something else. Someone to be precise." Nathaniel nodded. Hayden tilted his head expressing his intrigue. "I need you to find a pristine witch and/ or warlock." Nathaniel declared. 

"And why is that?" Hayden was confused even further.

"Because a pristine witch and/ or warlock is the key to defeating Conrad." Declared Nathaniel sternly.