The night air was still around Unit 47-C, the quiet hum of security drones gliding overhead the only sound that dared break the peace. The training complex was deep in sleep, its lights dimmed to their lowest settings to simulate nightfall. Inside the barracks, most recruits were sprawled across bunks in deep slumber, their bodies recovering from the day's drills and routines.
Kessa Holt, however, was still awake.
She had been turning restlessly in her bunk, unable to settle. A thought had tugged at her mind—something she had meant to tell Dray Ballack after his return from the war campaign. It wasn't urgent in the official sense, but it mattered to her.
She rolled out of bed and padded down the aisle toward Dray's room, quietly avoiding stepping on the uneven patches of the metallic floor that tended to creak. Upon reaching the room, she knocked twice. No response.
"Dray?"
One of his roommates stirred, squinting at her. "He left a while ago... toilet, I think."
Kessa nodded in thanks and turned back into the corridor. Her pace quickened slightly as a strange sensation washed over her—like a distant pulse in the air.
The toilet block was at the far end of the complex, down a darkened hallway where motion sensors rarely triggered unless someone walked close enough. As she neared, a muffled sound reached her ears.
A low groan.
Instinct prickled. Her heart thumped.
She paused at the door. "Dray?"
No reply.
She pushed the door open slowly, her breath caught in her throat.
Inside, crouched against the far wall beneath a flickering light, was a figure she barely recognized.
His features were unmistakable—Dray's face. But the rest of him?
Pale skin like marble, veined with faint silver lines. A gaunt frame, wiry and strangely elegant. His once-dark hair had turned a flowing white, draping down over his glowing crimson eyes. His lips trembled as he whispered to no one in particular.
"Blood... blood... blood..."
Kessa stepped forward. "Dray?"
He flinched, snapping his head in her direction. For a moment, his gaze burned like fire, feral and monstrous. Then it softened, recognition wrestling its way to the surface.
"Leave!" he growled. "I can't hold it back..."
Kessa's breath hitched. Her instincts screamed at her to run, but her heart refused. Something about the pain in his voice, the trembling in his body, made it clear: he was suffering.
She stepped forward. "You need blood. Don't you?"
He tried to turn away. "I won't do it... I might..."
She rolled up her sleeve.
"Then let me help you."
His eyes widened with disbelief. "No... I'll lose control..."
"You won't," she said firmly. "I trust you."
His hand shook as he took hers. Then, with a growl of restraint finally shattered, he pulled her close and bit gently into the soft skin of her neck.
A gasp escaped her lips, the pain sharp at first—but then something else bloomed. Warmth. Tingling. Ecstasy. Her knees buckled slightly, and she clutched his shoulders, she hugged Dray as a strange mix of agony and pleasure coursed through her.
Dray drank deeply, instinct overriding thought.
Then the system intervened.
System Notification:
Warning: Vital signs of donor critical. Immediate release required.
And you have to overcome the pleasure of drinking blood or you become feral.
Dray blinked back into awareness. He tore himself away from her neck, panting. Kessa collapsed to her knees with a groan.
"I almost lost myself there" Dray thought while shaking.
No one knows maybe he is shaking because of drinking too much of Kessa blood or fear of becoming a feral vampire.
"Will she be okay?" he asked aloud, desperate.
System Response: Yes. Life signs stable. Non-fatal extraction.
Relief flooded him.
He summoned the system interface.
System Interface:
Name: Dray Ballack
Bloodline: Vampiric
Race: Nightwalker
Level: 11
Class: Vampire
Strength: 19
Agility: 21
Endurance: 16
Vitality: 18
Skills:
• Night Adaptation (Passive-30%)
• Blood Sense (Passive – Incomplete)
• Blood Echo (Tier I-20%)
• Phantom Reaper (Intermediate Assassination Skill – 15%) Fully Owned
Inventory:
• Rusted Circuit Knife
• Obsidian Data Chip
• Unknown Crystal (Bound)
• Healing Potion
System Shop: [Access Granted]
Next Level: 700 EXP
Status: Filled
Main Quest: 50% Completed
As he reviewed the stats, a soft whimper drew his attention. Kessa.
She was curled on the floor, her body trembling violently.
"System... what's happening?"
System Response: Bloodline detected in host victim. Blood exchange ratio exceeded safe threshold. Initiating Turn Sequence.
"She's turning?!"
Affirmative. Probability of success: 50%. First-generation conversion unstable.
Dray's breath caught. His heart raced as he knelt beside her. "Will she survive?"
Unknown. Early-stage vampirism is unpredictable. You just turned unintentionally, host. Stability varies.
He watched helplessly as her body arched, as if caught in a storm of energy. Her skin shimmered briefly with a silken sheen. Her breathing labored.
He held her hand.
"Please..." he whispered. "Please don't die."
The turning took over thirty agonizing minutes. Finally, Kessa fell still. Her chest rose and fell slowly.
A new notification chimed.
System Notification:
Congratulations.
First successful Turn complete.
Name: Kessa Holt
Race: Noctilux Seductress (Vampiric Subspecies)
Bloodline Rank: Noble (Potential Unlocked)
Reason: Host Vampiric Bloodline classified as Purest-Sealed Variant
Title Earned: Nightwalker Creator
Dray sat back, his heart pounding.
He had done it.
He had turned someone.
And not just anyone.
Kessa Holt had become the first of his bloodline.
But what would happen next?
And could he keep this secret much longer?
Only time would tell.