Gabriel
The city was our new hunting ground.
Over the past few weeks, we had learned to move among people, to remain unnoticed, to use our surroundings.
But Isaac was not satisfied.
He never was.
"You hide well." He stood beside an old lantern, the flickering light casting distorted shadows across the cobblestones.
"But you're still too predictable."
Raphael shifted his weight from one foot to the other. "And how exactly do we change that?"
Isaac let his gaze drift over us.
"By learning to move in a world that does not want you."
Raphael
I knew what he meant.
We weren't just hunters.
We were prey.
The church wouldn't help us. The Black Inquisition would hunt us if they ever learned of us. And vampires weren't our only enemies.
"What do you really want from us?" I finally asked.
Isaac looked at me, his face unreadable.
"For you to survive."
I hesitated. There was more.
"Someone taught you this, didn't they?"
His expression barely changed, but for the briefest moment, I saw a flicker of something.
Then he looked away, as if the question didn't matter.
"He had no choice."
Gabriel studied him, his head slightly lowered. "Was he a hunter?"
Isaac took a slow breath. "Not at first."
Michael stared at him, his expression thoughtful. "Then… what was he?"
Isaac remained silent.
And at that moment, I knew—he wouldn't tell us.
Michael
For the first time, I sensed that Isaac was hiding something that truly hurt him.
We all had our secrets.
But Isaac's past wasn't just a shadow hanging over him—it was a scar.
I wanted to push further. But before I could even open my mouth, he raised a hand, a short, unmistakable signal.
"The conversation is over."
His eyes glinted in the darkness, colder than usual.
"You have a new trial."
And then, the air shifted.
Gabriel
I felt it immediately.
This was no longer training.
It was a test.
"You've learned how to disappear into the shadows." Isaac's voice was quiet, but it cut through the night. "Now you will learn what happens when the darkness no longer protects you."
My stomach tightened.
Michael watched him closely. "And how exactly?"
Isaac's gaze flickered away, his fingers tracing the hilt of his knife—not as a threat, but as if he was prepared in case something went wrong.
Then he spoke. A single word.
"Run."
Raphael
A scream tore through the silence.
Not human.
Not animal.
Something in between.
I spun around—and saw a figure emerge from the shadows.
Tall. Twisted. Not quite human, yet not entirely monstrous.
Its gaze landed on us.
Then it lunged.
Michael
We ran.
I didn't know what this thing was.
But I knew we weren't supposed to fight it.
Isaac wanted us to understand what it meant to be hunted.
So we ran.
Through alleys. Over rooftops. Under bridges.
Yet the thing kept following.
It was fast.
Too fast.
Gabriel
I felt my breath burn in my lungs.
Raphael stumbled but recovered. Michael grabbed a crate, shoving it behind us to slow the creature down—but it barely made a difference.
"This is impossible!" Raphael shouted. "What the hell is that thing?!"
Isaac hadn't told us what we were dealing with.
And I knew he had done that on purpose.
Because this wasn't a fight we were supposed to win.
This was a fight we were supposed to survive.
Isaac Crowe
I stood on a rooftop, watching them from a distance.
They ran. They fought against their instincts.
I had trained them to become hunters.
But today, they had to learn what it meant to be prey.
Because only those who had been hunted could ever truly understand what it meant to hunt.
And if they survived…
Then I knew they would be ready for the next step.