New York, Six Months Ago.
The first sense to return wasn't sight; it was hearing. And it came like an explosion.
The sound of the wind outside, which should have been a mere whisper, roared like a hurricane battering against the windows. The hum of electricity coursing through the walls of Ruby's house was a shrill, constant scream. And closer — much closer — there were two drums beating in distinct rhythms.
Thump-thump… Thump-thump…
Hearts. Blood being pumped.
Natalie opened her eyes.
The world was no longer the same. The colors were violent in their vividness. She could see dust motes floating in the air, each one capturing the moonlight.
The scent of candle wax, expensive perfume, and skin invaded her nostrils, so potent that she felt nauseous.
She sat up in bed with a movement that was too fast, inhuman. Her body seemed to vibrate with a static energy demanding release.
"Natalie?" A voice called out.
Natalie turned her head. The movement left a visual trail, a blur of motion.
Standing before her were Rose and Ruby. But Natalie didn't see friends. She saw threats.
Her newborn instincts screamed that she was a predator in unknown territory, and these two creatures were too close.
"Get out!" Natalie screamed, but the sound that escaped her throat was a guttural growl.
Without thinking, driven by instinctive panic, Natalie lunged. She vaulted from the bed, closing the distance between them in the blink of an eye.
She shoved Ruby with full force, throwing the red-headed vampire against the vanity, which shattered upon impact.
Immediately, she spun toward Rose, claws extending, ready to shred.
Rose didn't flinch. She blocked Natalie's attack, gripping the newborn's wrists with an iron strength.
"Look at me!" Rose ordered, her voice imbued with command.
Natalie struggled, hissing, her eyes wild and red.
"Let me go! Who are you?!"
Rose pinned her against the wall, using her own body to immobilize the girl. She brought her face close to Natalie's, forcing eye contact.
"It's me, Nat. Rose. You asked for this. You died to be reborn. Remember?"
Natalie stopped fighting. Rose's scent —jasmine and ice — penetrated the fog of fury. The memories returned in a flood: the pain, the loss of Kara, the club, the final bite.
The red in her eyes dimmed slightly, giving way to recognition.
"Rose?" Natalie whispered, her body going limp. "What's happening to me? Everything is… too loud."
Ruby picked herself up from the wreckage of the vanity, dusting off her clothes, looking unbothered.
"Welcome to the food chain, sweetheart. The first day is always a migraine."
Natalie slid down the wall to the floor, bringing a hand to her throat.
"My throat… it's burning. It feels like I swallowed glass and fire."
Rose crouched in front of her, stroking her face.
"That's the Thirst. Your body burned through all the remaining human blood to complete the transformation. Now you are empty. And you need to fill up."
"I need… blood?" Natalie asked, feeling her stomach contract painfully at the mere thought of the word.
"If you don't feed, you'll start to desiccate. The pain will drive you mad," Rose explained calmly. "Come. Let's hunt."
The city night was cold, but Natalie felt no chill. She felt the pulse of the metropolis.
Rose led her to a busy nightlife district but kept to the shadows of the alleyways.
"The rule is simple," Rose said, watching the humans pass by. "We are superior, but we are not careless. Alice liked blood bags. I prefer it straight from the source. But, Natalie… we don't kill unless it's necessary."
Natalie, trembling with hunger, looked at Rose.
"How? If I start… how do I stop?"
"I'll teach you. The secret is control. You drink enough to sate yourself, but leave enough for them to live. They are cattle, Natalie, not disposable trash. If you break the toy, you can't play with it again."
Rose pointed to a man leaving a bar alone, lighting a cigarette. He looked healthy, his blood strong.
"Him. Go. Use what you have. Turn on the charm. Don't let him feel fear. Fear can sour the blood."
Natalie took a deep breath. The hunger was a living entity inside her, guiding her steps.
She stepped out of the shadows, walking toward the man.
Her gait changed; it was more fluid, more sensual. The man looked up, and upon seeing her, he froze. A vampire's beauty was a weapon.
"Hi…" Natalie said. Her voice came out husky, seductive. "Do you have a light?"
The man smiled, enchanted.
"For you? I have everything."
He lit her cigarette. Natalie touched his hand. The heat of human skin was intoxicating. She moved closer, invading his space, and he didn't pull away.
"Shall we go somewhere quieter?" she suggested.
He followed her into the alley without question.
As soon as they were hidden, Natalie pushed him gently against the wall and kissed him. As she kissed him, she felt his artery pulsing against her lips. The sound was deafening.
Thump-thump. Thump-thump.
She couldn't stand it.
Natalie moved down to his neck and bit.
Blood flooded her mouth — hot, salty, divine.
The burning in her throat vanished, replaced by pure ecstasy. Natalie moaned, pressing the man's body tight against hers.
He didn't scream; the toxin kept him docile.
But Natalie drank too much. The euphoria blinded her. She wanted more. She wanted the last drop. She felt his heart begin to stutter, the rhythm becoming erratic, and instead of stopping, she sucked harder.
"Okay, that's enough." Rose's voice cut through the trance.
A strong hand grabbed Natalie's hair and yanked her back violently.
Natalie hissed, teeth stained red, trying to lunge back at her prey.
"That's enough!" Rose grabbed Natalie's face, forcing her to look into her eyes. "He'll die if you take another drop. Control yourself, girl."
Natalie blinked, the red mist dissipating. She looked at the man, who was sliding down the wall, pale as wax, barely conscious.
"I… I almost…"
Rose let go of Natalie and turned to the man. She gripped his chin, lifting his face. Rose's eyes glowed a deep blue, capturing the victim's hazy gaze.
"Look at me," Rose commanded. "None of this happened. You drank too much. You tripped and hit your head. You're dizzy, nauseous, and you want to go home and sleep. You didn't see anyone. Now… go."
The man blinked, confused.
"Drank too much… go home…"
He stood up, stumbling, and left the alley without looking back.
Rose turned to Natalie, wiping a drop of blood from the rookie's chin with her thumb.
"That was close. But you stopped."
Natalie was shaking, the energy of the blood vibrating within her.
"It's… incredible," she confessed, with a mix of shame and pleasure.
Rose smiled, proud.
"Welcome to the eternity club, gorgeous."
(...)
London - Present Day.
Rain lashed against the windows of a government building in Westminster. Inside, an exclusive gala was underway. Politicians, businessmen, and lobbyists mingled, toasting with champagne.
Alice wasn't dressed to kill, or at least, she didn't look like it. She wore a navy-blue evening gown, elegant and discreet, with silk gloves concealing hands calloused from battle.
Her hair was pulled back in an impeccable bun. She looked like an aristocrat, an investor.
But her eyes, hidden behind brown contact lenses, swept the room with the precision of a radar.
She was hunting.
Her target: LordSebastianSterling. An influential senator, known for blocking investigations into disappearances across London.
And, according to Alice's sources, an ancient vampire who served James Butcher directly.
She spotted him. He was in a reserved corner, laughing with a group of bankers. He exuded arrogance and the subtle scent of old blood.
Alice grabbed a flute of champagne and glided across the room. She used a subtle touch of hypnosis to bypass the VIP area security.
When she got close to Sebastian, she "accidentally" bumped into him, spilling the drink onto his suit.
"Oh, a thousand apologies, my Lord," Alice said, with a perfect British accent and an expression of mortification.
Sebastian looked irritated for a second, but upon seeing the beauty of the woman before him, he smiled.
"Not a problem, my dear." He looked into her eyes, attempting to use his supernatural charm. "But you owe me a conversation in exchange for the stain."
"I insist on helping to clean it," Alice said, lowering her voice. "There is a private washroom in the east corridor. May I assist you there?"
Sebastian's smile widened. Greed and lust shone in his eyes. He thought he was the predator.
"It would be a pleasure."
They left the main hall. As soon as the door to the private corridor clicked shut, isolating them from the noise of the party, Sebastian's posture relaxed. He turned to Alice, ready to attack or seduce.
But Alice had already shifted.
She locked the door. When she turned back, the contact lenses had fallen out, revealing the furnace-red of her eyes.
"What the…" Sebastian began.
Alice didn't let him finish. She grabbed him by the throat and hurled him through a solid oak door, into a soundproof office.
Sebastian crashed onto a mahogany desk, snapping it in half. He tried to rise, hissing, baring his fangs.
"Do you know who I am?!" he screamed.
"I do. You're the messenger." Alice walked toward him. She pulled off her silk gloves, revealing the black claws growing from her fingertips.
Sebastian tried to use blood magic, conjuring a red dagger in the air, but Alice intercepted it with her bare hand, crushing the magic as if it were glass. The blood of Dracula within her nullified cheap tricks.
She grabbed Sebastian's hand and broke three of his fingers, one by one.
"Where is James Butcher?"
"Go to hell!" Sebastian spat.
Alice kicked his leg, shattering the fibula. He screamed.
"I've already been there. It's cold. Now tell me where he is."
The torture lasted ten minutes. Alice was methodical. She had no hurry, nor mercy. She needed the information.
Finally, broken and weeping blood, Sebastian yielded.
"The docks… Southwark… there's a protected warehouse… he is gathering troops there…"
Alice nodded.
"Thank you."
Sebastian looked at her, expecting mercy or imprisonment.
"The Council will kill you…"
Alice crouched over him.
"The Council is already dead. They just don't know it yet."
With a swift movement, Alice's hand pierced Sebastian's chest like a spear, breaking through the sternum and ribs. Her fingers wrapped around the vampire's cold, dead heart.
She pulled.
The sound of arteries tearing was wet and sickening. Alice held up the heart, still pulsing with residual magic, before Sebastian's terrified eyes as he began to turn to ash.
Alice brought the organ to her mouth. She bit down, drinking the concentrated blood from the heart of an elder. It was pure power. It was information. It was fuel.
Her eyes glowed with an intense scarlet light, illuminating the dark room. She felt Sebastian's strength being absorbed into hers, bolstering the heritage of Dracula.
She dropped the remains of the heart on the floor, wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, and straightened her gown, covering the blood with the black coat that was draped over a chair.
Alice left the office, leaving behind only dust and silence.
She had a name. She had a location.
James Butcher would be next.