A/N: Important for me to mention this, Diary Entry refers to 1st Person POV, and Archive Entry a 3rd Person POV.
[Blood Archive Entry]
The world stopped spinning, and where there once was a modest apartment, now there was an opulent living room. Gigantic and decorated perfectly, as if centuries were used to perfect the exact disposition of every single item in the room.
The only odd thing was…
The room was entirely red.
The chandeliers, the marble floor, everything took the color of blood.
Even the fire crackled in the same ominous shading, the furniture as well.
Everything.
The woman looked around in stupor.
Utterly shocked by everything that happened in the span of a few seconds.
The woman sat frozen in a high-backed chair softer than any she'd known.
In front of her was that same man, the same ominous and mysterious figure from before.
He was smiling softly at her. A soft, reassuring, calm smile.
He was about two meters tall. His hair was a shade darker than hers, soft and luscious, flowing like a cascade of living darkness. Eyes glowing in blood red, pulsing softly. The ears were a bit pointier, not quite enough to be called monstrous, nor as elegant as to appear as those elves from fiction, just very different from any she'd seen before.
"I imagine you're frightened," his melodious voice dragged, elegant and refined, but utterly calm. "You've every reason to be. But I promise you—I mean no harm."
The woman took a long time to respond, scared she might anger the mysterious man if she were to speak the wrong thing. But he just stayed there, with a reassuring smile, patiently waiting for her to compose herself.
She straightened her spine and pushed her shoulders up. Steeling her resolve.
"I-" yet when the time to actually speak came, she faltered. "What- what do you want with me?"
"A fair question." His smile was faint, almost human. "I was cast into your world against my will. This realm rejects me—it seeks to rewrite what I am. If that happens, I will cease to exist as I am now."
He began to pace, eyes flicking to the crimson fire. "I will not allow that. But to remain, I must belong here—I must be born as something, or someone, native to this world."
Her breath caught. "You mean… You want to possess me?"
"No." His tone softened further. "Nothing so cruel. I wish to be reborn through you."
"You what?"
"As your child."
She blinked. "You're joking."
"I am not." A brief glint of humor flickered in his eyes. "Though I'll admit it sounds absurd. But the alternative—fighting your world's will—would cause apocalyptic levels of destruction."
Her voice trembled. "And… what exactly does that mean for me?"
"It means," he said, stepping closer but keeping a careful distance, "that I will gift you my blood-essence. It will take root, as if life were conceived, but without pain, and without more intrusive methods."
"So…" She tilted her head. "No… physical method? Because I'm not too keen on spreading my legs to a total stranger, even if you're quite handsome."
He almost smiled. "No. You will not need to 'spread your legs,' as you so bluntly put it."
Despite herself, she huffed—half laugh, half disbelief. "Good. I wasn't sure what kind of crazy ritual I'd signed up for."
"Nor was I," he murmured. "But I thank you, nonetheless. You're about to give me something priceless. A place in your world."
"But why me?"
"Well… Your blood somewhat resonates with mine, so that means we are compatible to a certain extent. Furthermore, you are pure—untainted by the world."
"Pure?"
"A virgin."
She deadpanned.
"So, how exactly does this work?" She swallowed dryly. "What does it mean for me?"
"Well… First and foremost, I will seal your memories of this conversation."
"Why?"
"For your safety. I do not know how this world operates, but I do not wish to risk your safety. So, until I am reborn and can properly protect you, the memories remain sealed."
"I understand."
"And even then, if your future-self wishes for them to be forgotten, it shall be so."
He paused. Looking at the smoldering red embers. His look a bit downcast and resigned.
"As for myself… I am old… Older than you can possibly imagine. And I wish for a second chance—one that you are graciously providing me with, so thank you, truly—I will 'detach' my own memories."
Her expression turned to a puzzled one, utterly confused by what he meant by detach his memories.
He noticed it and smiled softly.
"I will give your 'child' autonomy. He will be a full new being… He will have all of my powers; he will be all that my existence entails, but he won't be burdened by the weight I carry. For that is a punishment I do not wish to befall any child."
"So, you'll delete your own memories?"
"Haha, no, I will not 'delete' my memories. I will record them, with a unique capability of mine, and whenever he accesses them, he may enjoy the knowledge they carry, yet he won't experience them fully. That should keep him from turning overly cynical and inhumane far too early."
"You say that as if it will happen sooner or later."
His eyes turned bitter for a single moment before going back to their serene state.
"Immortality is far heavier than you could imagine."
He paused as if searching for answers in the still air, or maybe just choosing the right words.
"But that can be prevented… And I am giving you and him that chance."
"How?"
"By surrounding himself with people he cares about. By having a goal that keeps him moving forward. And not drown in monotony."
She only nodded to his words.
"Any more questions?"
"No, I don't think I have… After all, I am going to forget all this."
He smiled amusedly.
He cupped his hands together and extended them forward, palms facing away from him, and cracked his fingers.
"Let's do this."
He got up and approached her in steady steps, extending his hand and resting it softly against her abdomen. Taking in a gust of air to fill his lungs, he started chanting in a hypnotic and soft language, one she couldn't recognize.
A bright and blinding red light shone.
And the woman found herself back in her apartment.
A confused and slightly startled expression on her face. As if she forgot something important, something that changed her life forever.
The air around her pulsed softly. Power rippled all around. Echoing an event that would change the world forever.
A good distance from there, on the outskirts of the city, in a dark and dreary warehouse. A coffin stirred. In it, a blonde woman, beautiful beyond reason. A dagger was deeply stuck in her chest. Her skin had a grey, sickly tone, with blackened veins tracing her skin.
As soon as the ripple reached her, the dagger twisted, a minuscule amount, but it moved, nonetheless. The grey skin on the tip of her fingers receded, gaining a healthier tone.
The change was slow, infuriatingly slow. It would take years for the process to be completed.
And even further away, deep beneath ancient mountains.
A crypt older than time or civilization. In it, runes of untold origins pulsed in a faint red glow.