Adrian left the motel under the cover of night, the neon sign of Sunset Lodge flickering faintly behind him. He didn't check out; this trip was supposed to be quick. Mounting his motorcycle, he adjusted his jacket against the crisp chill of the air. The hum of the engine filled the silence of the empty road as he headed toward the forest where the so-called cult gathering was rumored to be taking place.
The night was darker than usual, the sky overcast with thick clouds that smothered the moonlight. Streetlights became sparse as he approached the outskirts of Sidan, their warm glow giving way to the foreboding shadows of the dense forest ahead. Adrian tightened his grip on the handlebars. Despite his determination, unease gnawed at the edges of his mind. He replayed the details of his day the victims' wounds, Dr. Blake's haunting words, and now this strange gathering in the forest. The rumors of something supernatural were absurd, he told himself. "Vampires don't exist," Adrian muttered aloud, his voice barely audible over the wind. "This has to be something else a cult, or just some criminals." As the forest loomed closer, Adrian's headlight cut through the gloom, illuminating a narrow dirt path leading into the trees. His gaze shifted to the side of the road, where something caught his attention. At first, it looked like a discarded pile of clothes, but as Adrian slowed his bike and squinted, his stomach dropped.
It was a body.
He killed the engine and approached cautiously, his steps hesitant. A man lay sprawled on the ground, his clothes soaked in blood. Adrian's breath caught as he took in the deep gashes across the man's chest and arms. The victim's lifeless eyes stared blankly at the night sky, his face frozen in an expression of terror. Adrian felt a wave of nausea rise in his throat. He stumbled back, nearly tripping over a root. This wasn't just a murder it was a massacre.
A sudden scream pierced the silence, sharp and guttural, sending a chill down his spine. Adrian whipped his head toward the forest, where faint flickers of light danced between the trees. The scream came again, more desperate this time. He hesitated, his instincts screaming at him to turn back. But curiosity and his journalistic drive propelled him forward. Taking a deep breath, Adrian retrieved his camera from his bag and crept toward the source of the noise.
The scene he stumbled upon was chaos incarnate. Adrian hid behind a tree, his heart hammering in his chest as he tried to process what he was seeing. Men dressed in white uniforms wielded strange weapons crossbows, silver-tipped spears, and other unfamiliar devices that crackled with energy. Their opponents were unlike anything Adrian had ever imagined. Pale-skinned and unnaturally fast, they moved with an almost predatory grace, their glowing eyes cutting through the darkness. Adrian froze, his mind spiraling into disbelief. "No," he whispered, shaking his head as if to dispel an illusion. "This isn't real. It can't be real."
And yet, the evidence was undeniable. These weren't cultists. They weren't even human.
Vampires.
He'd always dismissed the idea of vampires as nothing more than folklore fairy tales used to scare children. But now, faced with the undeniable reality of them, his rational mind warred with what his eyes were seeing.
"This… this has to be some kind of stunt," Adrian muttered, his voice trembling. "Costumes. Makeup. Special effects." But the raw ferocity of the battle and the gruesome, very real bloodshed made it impossible to cling to those thoughts. His knees buckled slightly, and he gripped the tree for support, his breathing shallow and ragged. Blood sprayed across the forest floor as one of the creatures lunged at a hunter, its claws slashing through the air. The hunter dodged expertly, plunging a silver-tipped blade into the vampire's chest. The creature let out an otherworldly screech before collapsing, its body convulsing violently. Adrian stumbled backward, his stomach churning at the sound. He fought the urge to vomit, his mind racing.
"What the hell is this?" he whispered, the camera shaking in his hands.
He fumbled with the lens, trying to steady himself enough to take pictures. His instincts as a journalist told him to document everything, but his survival instincts screamed at him to run. As he adjusted the lens, a sudden movement caught his attention. One of the hunters shouted something indecipherable, pointing toward a figure deeper in the fray. Adrian followed the gesture and saw a young vampire, barely standing, with blood dripping from a wound on her side. She looked barely older than him, her dark hair matted with blood and dirt. Her movements were sluggish, her strength clearly fading. Adrian's breath caught as the hunters closed in on her, their weapons gleaming.
"No," he murmured, almost involuntarily. Despite everything, something about her vulnerability struck a chord in him.
But before he could act or even think a hand clamped down on his shoulder.
"Who are you?" a voice hissed.
Adrian spun around to find a hunter glaring at him, his face partially obscured by a mask. The man's eyes darted to the camera in Adrian's hands, narrowing with suspicion.
"I'm " Adrian stammered, raising his hands. "I'm just a journalist! I didn't mean "
"You've seen too much," the hunter growled, drawing a blade from his belt.
"No, wait!" Adrian pleaded, panic rising in his chest. "I'm not involved! I'm human!"
The hunter didn't listen. He lunged, and Adrian barely had time to backpedal before the blade slashed across his side. Pain erupted through him as he stumbled, clutching his wound.
"Stop!" Adrian gasped, his vision swimming. "I'm not "
But the hunter advanced, his intent clear.
Adrian tried to run, but his legs gave out. He collapsed to the ground, the world tilting as blood seeped through his fingers.
The last thing he saw before darkness claimed him was the young vampire from before, her glowing eyes locked on his. As the said in his head "does eyes have where have I seen them before".