Prologue

???

In darkness the creature groaned, feeling cold and hot in waves. Blood boiling in its veins, pain pulsing with its heartbeat in an unfamiliar rhythm. Its face was still glowing with remnants of shooting pain, from when the bones had reset themselves earlier, but when, it couldn't tell. Time no longer existed, only the pain did.

From a distance came the sound of footsteps. In a proper state, it would have been able to recognise two pairs of work boots hitting the concrete floor. Now, all it could do was try to hide, a blind panic overcoming it as it scrambled in an attempt to find shelter, behind cardboard boxes its squirming had long since flattened.

The door creaked as it opened outwards, electrical light now entering the room and burning its eyes. It groaned in pain, loud enough for the conversation to halt as a hand fumbled for the light switch. With an electrical hum, the overhead lights sprung to life, their brightness causing the creature to roar in pain. It jumped up and smashed the fluorescent tubes, shards of glass stabbing its hand and face, which only made it roar more.

"God! Boss, help! We've got some homeless tweaker in here!" The two figures moved back out of the doorway, their silhouettes now holding back some of the light. The creature tried to grab something to hide under, while the shards in its face stung as they were driven out of its skin and fell to the floor.

A third shadow held back more of the light, followed by a heavy voice filled with fear and rage. "Goddammit! That ain't a homeless person, you fools! Get the carver, now! And close the fucking door!"

The door slammed shut, leaving the creature alone with its groans. The voices and footsteps outside fell away from its awareness and only the pain remained in the foreground. As if provoked by the glass, its bones began to reset all at once, ending any ability it had to pay attention.

???

It had no idea how much time had passed when more footsteps approached. There was something to the pace that made it scramble into a corner.

When the door opened, this time weaker light entered. Those dreaded footsteps entered, a silhouette that only temporarily blocked the light, before the figure knelt. "Well what do we have here." Cynical feigned amusement. A voice that was calm yet more frightful than the lights from before. But the creature was in too much pain to respond.

The heavy voice from before came from the doorway. "Please tell me it's not a vampiric thrall, Carver. The paperwork would be a nightmare."

The man shook his head. "If only you were that lucky. No, this was a vampire. And then it ate a Fae. You caught it during its transformation. Be glad you lot were off the past few days. If you had entered before, it might have attacked you."

The voice was calm, resolute, its careful timbre serving as a lullaby for the creature. But the figure moved and used a cane to push the creature, the touch of it burning, luring out a scream. The cane withdrew, then another took its place, way less painful, merely eliciting a groan during the contact.

Still calm and uncaring, the man spoke his conclusions. "It barely responds to iron. I'm guessing it's about two-fifths into its transformation. The good news is that the transformation is painful enough that it can't fight back. And at this point, the vampiric bloodlust is already gone, so it just desires shelter."

"So you can kill it?" The creature tried to crawl back at that sudden threat, but its back was already up against the wall. Not even the cold concrete could cool the burn underneath its skin.

The man rose to his feet, then pushed the creature down with the iron cane. "You understood that, huh? I could kill you, yes. And I am no fan of Fae or vamp, so it's really tempting to just put you out of your misery right now. But you know what? I prefer to know you're suffering. Both of you deserve it."

He stepped back and continued his conversation, though his eyes never left the creature. "It will turn into a being that can only feed on vampires, not on normal people. Letting it live will help clean out any vampires in the area."

"What if it can't find any, Carver? Will it come after people?" The heavy voice felt disturbed.

"No. It will just starve. Good fucking riddance, if you ask me. But it will have time. Do you need anything from the room?" The tone was still calm, but there was something about his eyes.

"Nothing we can't do without. Want us to seal it?"

"No." Malice. The man truly enjoyed the creature's suffering. "Leave the door unlocked, so it can escape once its transformation is done. Stay out of its way, to avoid uncovering its identity. As for you, being, do me a favour. Return a daywalker. I'd hate for you to die too easily."

Those words did something. Caused a twist inside the creature. It realised all too well, knew that phrase had manipulated it. How dare he. Rage and hatred filled her eyes. "Will kill. You." 

The man just scoffed. "Will you now? Tell me, being. What's my name?"

She looked up at him, a faint smile on his face that didn't reach his eyes. She dug deeper, eyesight twisting the way it had randomly done before. And with the sight came not an understanding, but a void. That man's face was nothing. Those eyes held darkness. At that point, she knew. There was no name to call him by, not any more, never again.

He walked away without another word, gently closing the door behind him. And long after the echo of his footsteps had disappeared, the pain was still overcome with the fear of what was to be.