WARNING: This chapter contains scenes of extreme violence, blood, and depictions of physical and psychological harm. Reader discretion is strongly advised.
SARENA
THE PERSON holding me began to step back slowly, cautiously—like he was trying not to provoke a beast. But because his grip was still locked around my arm, I was dragged with him, my feet scraping against the ground as I struggled to keep my balance.
My heart pounded so hard it felt like it was trying to break through my ribs.
The figure in front of us drew closer and closer.
Until he finally stopped a few steps away, close enough for the moonlight to reveal him clearly.
Tall. Broad shoulders. A black coat soaked in crimson. His hair was messy, damp—either from sweat or from something far worse.
He looked like he had walked straight out of a massacre. And yet he stood there like the night itself belonged to him.
His eyes glowed.
Not the dull, sickly red I'd seen in vampires.
Not the empty, cruel eyes of the humans who worked inside that facility.
His were different.
Gold.
Bright and unnatural, like molten metal in the dark.
The man holding me stiffened beside me. I felt his body tense, felt his grip tighten like fear had suddenly turned his hand into a vice.
"Who the hell are you—" he demanded, trying to sound brave, but his voice wavered.
The stranger didn't answer. He didn't even look at him. Instead, his gaze lifted… and locked directly onto me.
Not at the men and women behind me.
Not at the guns raised toward him.
Not at the chaos surrounding us.
Only me.
His face was blank—too blank. No anger. No surprise. No fear. Not even curiosity.
Just coldness.
He stared at me like he had been searching for me for years… I couldn't move. I couldn't even swallow.
Then a woman's voice shattered the silence.
"Don't come any closer!" she screamed, her hands trembling as she raised her weapon.
But the man didn't flinch.
He didn't even react.
It was like her voice didn't matter.
Like none of them mattered.
The woman holding me suddenly panicked when she realized his attention was on me. She yanked me violently, pulling me in front of her like a shield.
The movement made my bruised body scream in pain. Before I could gasp, cold metal pressed against my throat.
A knife.
Its edge kissed my skin, and my blood ran cold.
"Try to come closer," she hissed shakily, her voice full of desperation. "And I'll cut her." Her grip tightened, and she pushed the blade harder.
A sharp sting sliced across my neck.
I felt the warm line of blood begin to form.
My breath hitched.
My eyes widened as fear swallowed me whole.
"G-Get the car!" she yelled at the others. "Now!" No one moved, scared of what would happen if they did. The girl was frustrated because of this.
I couldn't breathe properly.
I could feel the knife's edge trembling—not because she hesitated… but because she was terrified.
Terrified of him.
But the man in front of us didn't change.
Not even slightly.
His face remained calm, unreadable, carved out of stone. His golden eyes stayed fixed on me like nothing else existed.
Like the knife didn't exist.
Like my blood didn't matter.
Then he finally spoke.
"…There you are."
His voice was low.
Quiet.
But it carried something that made my stomach drop.
Not relief... Not warmth.
Something colder.
Something that sounded like a threat.
My throat tightened painfully.
I didn't know why those two words made my chest ache so violently.
Like I had heard them before.
Like my body remembered him even when my mind didn't.
I took a shaky step back without realizing it, my legs moving on instinct as the people around me did the same. Because the man took one step forward.
Just one.
And the air changed.
The men immediately straightened their guns directly at him, panic flashing across their faces.
"Don't move!" one of them shouted.
My breathing became frantic.
My mind screamed at me to run, but there was nowhere to go. My body was too weak. My hands were shaking. My heart felt like it was going to explode.
The woman holding me pressed the knife harder.
I whimpered, the pain sharp enough to make my eyes water.
"Stop!" she cried, her voice cracking. "Stop or I swear—"
The man's gaze flickered.
Not to her. Not to the knife. But to the thin line of blood running down my throat.
And in that instant… Something shifted in him.
It wasn't visible in his face. But I felt it.
Like the darkness around him suddenly moved.
Like the night itself inhaled. And then he was gone.
One second he was standing there. The next—A blur.
Black.
Red.
Fast enough that my eyes couldn't follow.
The woman holding me didn't even have time to scream.
A sickening crack split the air.
The man closest to him flew backward, his body slamming into the wall so hard the concrete cracked beneath the impact. His head hit with a brutal thud, and he collapsed like a broken doll.
Another man raised his gun and fired. The sound exploded through the night.
But the man moved again.
His hand shot out, grabbing the man's wrist mid-motion.
And then he twisted... Hard.
The snap of bone was loud.
Too loud.
It made my stomach turn.
The gun slipped from the man's fingers and clattered to the ground.
The man screamed—a raw, animal sound filled with agony.
And then—Blood.
So much blood.
It sprayed hot and thick, steaming in the cold night air. It splattered across the floor, across my bare feet, across my legs.
Warm.
Sticky.
Real.
My stomach lurched violently, bile rising into my throat.
I couldn't process what I was seeing.
It was too fast. Too brutal. Too unreal.
The man didn't stop.
He moved like death given a human form—silent, precise, merciless.
I could hear the wet sound of flesh tearing.
The crunch of bones.
The choking gasps of men who didn't even have time to beg.
My entire body went numb.
My ears rang.
My vision blurred.
I couldn't breathe.
I couldn't scream.
I couldn't do anything but stand there, frozen, while horror unfolded in front of me like a nightmare brought to life.
Then my knees gave out.
And I shut my eyes tightly, squeezing them closed as if it could erase what was happening.
But the sounds didn't stop.
They only got worse.
I was shaking so hard my teeth chattered. I pressed my hands against my ears, but it didn't help. I could still hear the screams.
The snapping.
The heavy thuds.
The splatter of blood hitting the ground.
I was terrified. So terrified that I wanted to disappear.
I wanted to end everything.
I wanted the darkness to swallow me whole so I wouldn't have to see… or feel… or hear any of it anymore.
But even with my eyes closed… I could still feel it.
The presence of that man.
I slowly opened my eyes when the noise finally stopped.
No screaming.
No gunshots.
No footsteps.
Nothing.
The world had gone unnaturally quiet, as if even the night itself was holding its breath.
The only thing I could hear was the soft whistle of cold wind slipping through the broken walls of the facility. It wrapped around my skin like icy fingers, stinging every open wound, making the cuts on my neck and arms burn like fire.
My body trembled violently.
Not just from the cold… but from the shock.
I lifted my head, blinking through blurred vision, and looked around.
And my breath caught in my throat.
Bodies.
Everywhere.
The men and women who had been behind me only moments ago—those frantic strangers, those terrified voices—were now scattered across the ground like discarded dolls. Some were twisted in unnatural angles. Some were half-covered in blood. Some stared blankly at the sky with lifeless eyes, as if they couldn't believe death had found them so quickly.
The smell hit me a second later.
Metallic.
Warm.
Thick.
It coated the air, choking and unbearable.
I stumbled backward, my hands shaking as I pressed my palm against the dirt, trying to push myself away from the sight. My stomach twisted violently, bile rising in my throat.
I couldn't even scream.
I couldn't even cry.
My body was too numb to react properly.
Then I saw him.
Standing in the middle of the massacre like he belonged there.
The man.
He didn't look exhausted.
He didn't look shaken.
He just stood there silently, surrounded by blood and death, his coat hanging heavy on his body like a shadow. His hands were soaked in crimson, droplets falling from his fingers onto the ground in slow, steady rhythm.
Drip... Drip... Drip...
The sound made my skin crawl.
He wasn't breathing heavily.
He wasn't panting.
It was as if slaughtering them had been nothing more than swatting flies.
I swallowed hard, my throat burning.
My instinct screamed at me to run.
So I did the only thing my body knew how to do.
I started backing away.
Slowly... Quietly.
Trying not to draw his attention.
My legs were trembling so badly I could barely stand, but I forced them to move. Every step sent pain shooting through my bruised ribs and swollen muscles. I could feel my body begging me to stop.
But fear was stronger.
I gathered what little strength I had left, my hands clenched into fists so tight my nails dug into my palms.
Please… please don't look at me.
But the moment I thought I might escape his notice…
He moved.
Not his body.
Just his head.
Slowly, deliberately, like a predator sensing prey.
And when his gaze met mine—
My blood turned to ice.
His eyes were still glowing gold, but there was no warmth in them. No mercy. No confusion. No humanity.
Nothing... Just emptiness.
A cold, endless void that made my soul shrink.
My body reacted before my mind could.
I pushed myself up and ran.
I ran like a dying animal.
Like someone who knew that if they stopped, even for a second, they would be torn apart.
I didn't care where I went.
I didn't care if I collapsed.
I just needed to get away from him.
Because everything about him screamed danger.
Behind me, the facility burned. Flames crawled up its walls, devouring the structure like it was made of paper. Smoke poured into the night sky, thick and suffocating, carrying the scent of burning flesh and chemicals.
I ran straight into the forest beside it.
The trees were dead and twisted, their branches clawing at the sky like skeletal hands. The ground was uneven and rough, filled with jagged rocks and sharp roots.
But I didn't stop.
I didn't even flinch when the bark tore into my skin.
When thorns scratched my arms.
When stones cut into my bare feet and warm blood trickled down my ankles.
Pain didn't matter.
Not compared to the terror behind me.
My lungs burned.
My heart hammered wildly.
I could barely see through the darkness, but I kept running, stumbling forward, gasping for air that felt too cold to breathe.
I thought—just for a moment—that I might actually get away.
Then—A sudden shift in the air.
Like the world itself was sliced open.
A powerful gust rushed past me so fast it made my hair whip violently against my face.
And my entire body froze.
Because he was there.
Right in front of me.
I stopped so abruptly I nearly fell.
My eyes widened, horror crashing into me like a wave.
His expression was different now.
Not blank.
Not calm.
There was something burning behind his eyes.
Rage.
Sharp, violent rage.
And before I could even step back. He grabbed me.
His hand wrapped around my throat like steel.
In one swift motion, he lifted me off the ground.
My back slammed against a tree with such force that the breath exploded out of my lungs. Pain shot through my spine, blinding and immediate.
I tried to scream, but no sound came out.
My feet kicked helplessly in the air, searching for the ground, but there was nothing beneath me. I was hanging like a doll in his grip.
My hands clawed at his wrist.
I hit him.
I scratched.
I begged my body to fight.
But he didn't move.
Didn't flinch.
Didn't even blink.
His grip tightened.
My vision blurred at the edges.
My throat burned.
I couldn't breathe.
I could only choke.
My nails dug into his skin, but it was useless. It felt like trying to break stone with bare hands.
I stared into his face, trembling violently.
There was no pity.
No hesitation.
His eyes were cold, and his jaw was clenched tight, as if killing me would be the easiest thing in the world.
I saw it then.
The certainty.
The decision already made.
He was going to end me.
And a strange thought slipped into my mind through the panic.
This is what I wanted… isn't it?
After everything… After the torture. After the needles. After being drained until I was nothing but a hollow body filled with pain…
Maybe death was mercy.
Maybe death was freedom.
My hands slowly stopped struggling.
My body began to go limp.
I closed my eyes.
I was ready.
Ready to let it happen.
Ready to finally stop feeling.
Then... A violent rush of air tore through the forest.
So strong it shook the branches above us.
And a voice cut through the darkness like a command.
"Stop it, Kazer!"
The pressure on my throat didn't vanish completely, but it loosened slightly.
Just enough for me to suck in a thin, shaky breath.
My lungs screamed.
My vision spun.
I was slipping.
Falling into darkness.
But I heard another voice—urgent, furious.
"We need her alive, dude! Snap out of it!"
Alive?
Why?
Why would anyone want me alive?
"Kazer!" someone shouted again.
Panic was clear in their tone, as if they weren't just afraid of what he might do to me… but of what he might become.
Then another voice—lower, desperate.
"Think of her... She's waiting."
The moment those words were spoken… I felt it.
Kazer's entire body stiffened.
Like something invisible had struck him.
His grip loosened.
For a split second, his breathing changed—sharp and uneven, like the name had dragged something ugly out of him.
And then he let go.
I fell.
My body hit the ground hard, the impact knocking what little air I had left out of me. Pain shot through my knees and arms as I collapsed into the dirt.
I coughed violently, clutching my throat as I gasped for breath.
The air tasted like soil and smoke.
My chest rose and fell rapidly, desperate, starving for oxygen.
I rolled onto my side, shaking uncontrollably.
Tears blurred my vision, but I forced myself to look up.
There were four of them.
Four silhouettes standing in the darkness, their faces hidden by shadows and the thick trees. I couldn't see their expressions, but I could feel the tension in the air.
I could feel the danger.
And Kazer…
Kazer stood there like he was fighting himself.
His fists clenched and unclenched at his sides. His shoulders were rigid, his head lowered slightly like an animal barely holding back the urge to kill.
Something inside me snapped.
Anger.
Exhaustion.
Despair.
All of it exploded at once.
I forced myself onto my knees, my voice breaking as I screamed at them.
"Why?!"
My throat burned, but I didn't care.
"Why don't you just kill me?!"
The words tore out of me like blood.
I stared at the shadows, at Kazer, at all of them.
"I'm tired!" I cried, my voice shaking violently. "I'm so damn tired!"
My chest tightened painfully.
Tears streamed down my face before I could stop them.
"Please… end me now," I begged, the desperation in my voice raw and humiliating.
Because it was true.
Even if I escaped… Even if I survived…
There was nothing waiting for me.
No home.
No family.
No future.
Just emptiness.
Just trauma.
Just a body that would never be the same.
Kazer suddenly moved.
He stepped forward and crouched in front of me.
The moonlight slipped through the trees just enough for me to see his face.
Close.
Too close.
His eyes were still gold, but darker now—stormy, furious, full of something sharp and poisonous.
He reached out and grabbed my chin, forcing my face upward.
I flinched at his touch.
His fingers were cold.
Strong.
His grip wasn't gentle.
It was possessive.
Controlling.
His thumb pressed into my cheek, squeezing hard enough to hurt.
I met his gaze, trembling, my lips parted as I struggled to breathe.
Then he spoke.
"You're not allowed to die," he said slowly.
His voice was quiet, but it was laced with anger so deep it felt like it could swallow the world.
"Not until I say so."
The words sent a chill down my spine.
Not because of the threat.
But because of the ownership behind them.
Like my life wasn't mine. Like my death wasn't mine. Like I wasn't mine.
He shoved my face away, letting go of my chin like I disgusted him.
Then he stood.
And without another word, he turned his back on me and walked away into the darkness.
One of his companions stepped forward quickly, trying to stop him.
"Kazer—wait!"
But Kazer didn't slow down.
He didn't look back.
He disappeared into the forest like a shadow swallowed by night.
And I was left there on the cold ground, shaking, bruised, terrified…
Alive.
To be continued...