the timeless Vampire

The Chronovault grew quiet as the Eternity Core's hum stabilized, its red veins mirroring Kael's erratic pulse. The single bulb flickered, casting eerie shadows on the lab's fractured walls. Beyond the broken window, the violet sky churned with ash, and wraith shrieks blended with monstrous stomps against the weakening shield. Kael sank against the console, the tablet clattering down. His gums ached, fangs grazing his lips, and a fierce hunger twisted in his gut—wild, urgent, like a caged predator.

He clung to The Alchemy of Eternity, its pages murmuring cryptic truths. His choice flooded back, stark and vivid. It was 2 a.m. in the old lab, fatigue clouding his eyes as he eyed the crimson vial. Dr. Varen's scorn rang out: "You'll never amount to more." Despair had gripped him—years of dead-end work, a mother dead from sickness, a father gone. When the hum rose and the vial glowed, Seris's voice offered escape: "Drink, and seize eternity." He'd shattered it by mistake, the blood soaking his skin, sealing the deal. Now, that decision seared his veins.

The hunger surged, drawn to a metallic scent—life. A wounded survivor limped past the window, a wraith in pursuit. Kael's mouth watered, his instincts urging him to hunt. He pressed his palms to the glass, the survivor's heartbeat pounding in his skull. I'm not a monster, he thought, yet the red vampire shadow on the floor mocked him.

Seris emerged, her silver hair glinting under the bulb. "You sense it now," she said, almost kindly. "The pact craves blood. You can't deny it long." She offered a vial, its contents dark and viscous. "This will dull the edge—for now."

Kael flinched. "I didn't want this!" he barked, but his hands betrayed him, grabbing the vial. The first taste was a jolt, soothing the beast, though guilt lingered. Memories surged—his mother's last plea, "Survive, Kael," and his vow to overcome his past. That vow had led him here, trading humanity for power.

Outside, the wraith seized the survivor, its eyes blazing. Kael's hunger spiked, but he turned away, gripping the book. Its text shimmered: "The bound must feed to persist, but the soul is theirs to keep." He muttered, "I'll find another path." The Core pulsed, and a new equation lit the tablet—maybe a way to undo the pact.

The lab door groaned open. A figure in a ragged uniform staggered in. "Dr. Kael?" a frail voice asked, clutching a gun. Kael's hunger roared, but he balled his fists, battling the urge. The choice was his—feed to live, or resist and gamble al