The sky was clear.
Too clear.
A passenger plane cut through the cold air above Rheinland, Germany. Inside, everything seemed normal. Quiet. Tired passengers. Dim lights.
But in seat 27A…
A man sat still.
Too still.
His skin was pale. His lips slightly open. His eyes… unfocused.
Then—
He twitched.
The woman beside him frowned.
> "Sir… are you okay?"
He turned slowly.
His eyes were red.
And then—
He lunged.
---
Screams filled the plane.
Blood spilled.
Chaos erupted in seconds.
The pilots tried to regain control—but it was too late.
The plane tilted sharply… then—
CRASH.
A fireball lit up the forest near Rheinland.
Metal twisted. Flames rose. Smoke filled the sky.
And from the wreckage…
Something crawled out.
Not human.
Not anymore.
---
Meanwhile… in the forest
Elena stood still, her eyes closed.
The night wrapped around her like a second skin.
> "Focus," Turichie said calmly.
Elena breathed slowly.
She could feel it now—
Everything.
The wind moving through leaves. The pulse of animals in the distance. The faint warmth of blood flowing… everywhere.
Her eyes opened.
They glowed faintly in the dark.
> "I can see…" she whispered.
The forest wasn't dark anymore.
It was clear.
Sharp.
Alive.
---
> "Good," Turichie said. "You're beginning to awaken."
Elena stepped forward.
Then—
She vanished.
A blur.
In a second, she was meters away.
She looked back, shocked.
> "That… that was me?"
> "Super speed," Turichie replied. "Your body is adapting."
Elena clenched her fist.
A strange feeling gathered in her palm.
Warm. Sharp.
Her blood.
It began to form—hardening, shaping into a thin, red crystal blade along her fingers.
She gasped.
> "What is this?"
> "Your blood… is your weapon now," Turichie said. "You can shape it. Use it. But remember—every time you do… you lose strength."
Elena looked at the glowing crimson edge.
Beautiful.
Dangerous.
> "So I have to choose when to use it…"
> "Exactly."
---
Hours passed.
She trained.
Jumping higher. Moving faster. Striking trees—splitting them clean.
Her control improved.
Her power grew.
But deep inside…
Her hunger waited.
---
Nightfall
Elena stood on a high cliff, looking at the sky.
And then she froze.
The moon…
Was red.
Not orange.
Not dim.
Red.
Like blood.
> "Turichie… why is the moon red?"
There was a pause.
Then—
> "Because tonight… you are not the only one who walks in the dark."
Elena's expression changed.
> "What do you mean?"
> "The man you fed on… the old one. He didn't just die."
Silence.
Then—
> "He changed."
Elena's heart dropped.
> "No…"
> "He became a vampire. A weaker one… unstable. And now… he has already spread it to others."
Her hands trembled.
> "So… there are more like me?"
> "No," Turichie said coldly. "They are not like you. They are broken. Hungry. Dangerous."
Elena looked toward the distant lights of her town.
Rheinland.
Her home.
Her family.
> "Then tonight…" she whispered.
> "They will hunt."
---
Elena stepped forward.
Her eyes sharpened.
Her fear…
Turned into something else.
> "Then I won't let them."
Her back tensed.
Pain surged—
And then—
Wings.
Dark, blood-like wings tore out from behind her, spreading wide into the night.
Elena gasped.
> "I can… fly?"
> "Only under the night," Turichie said. "Now go."
Elena didn't hesitate.
She stepped off the cliff—
And shot into the sky.
Fast.
Silent.
Deadly.
Below her, the town of Rheinland slept… unaware of what was coming.
Above them—
A red moon watched.
And a new predator rose to protect… or destroy.
---
End of Chapter 17
---