POV Nero
I don't think I had ever run that fast in my life.
I wasn't ready to come anywhere close to Klaus right now.
By the time I reached Nessa's house, my heart was still racing. When I stepped inside, I saw her sitting beside her brother.
"Did you get it?" she asked.
"Yep," I said, holding up the container of blood.
Her eyes moved from me to the vial. She took a deep breath.
"Alright," she said quietly. "Let's do it."
I smiled.
We went outside into the woods.
Nessa had already prepared an altar there for the spell. Symbols were carved into the ground, candles surrounded the area, and several grimoires lay open on a small wooden table.
I handed her everything she needed.
A piece of the White Oak tree.
She already had the power of the sun.
And finally, the blood of the doppelgänger.
She poured the blood into a small iron pot along with shavings from the White Oak wood. Then she began chanting.
The spell took hours.
She was drawing power directly from the sun, just like Esther Mikaelson had done centuries ago.
By the time night arrived…
The full moon had risen.
Perfect timing.
Nessa's voice grew louder as the magic built around us. The air itself felt heavy, like the world was holding its breath.
Finally, she stopped chanting.
She handed me the goblet filled with the dark red liquid.
I stared at it for a moment before smiling.
"Thank you, Nessa," I said sincerely. "And trust me, I will hold up my end of the bargain."
Without hesitation, I drank the blood.
The taste was metallic and thick.
Then Nessa picked up a blade.
Before I could even react—
She stabbed it straight through my heart.
Pain exploded through my chest.
I collapsed onto the ground as the world around me faded.
My heartbeat slowed.
Slower…
Slower…
Until it stopped.
And I died.
When I woke up, it was still night.
The full moon still hung in the sky.
Nessa had brought a random person from the village to complete the transition. To become both werewolf and vampire, I had to finish the process.
I had to feed.
And feed I did.
I grabbed the woman Nessa had brought and sank my fangs into her neck.
The blood filled my mouth.
Warm.
Powerful.
Alive.
I drank until her body went limp in my arms.
Then I dropped her.
And that's when I felt it.
I started to smile.
"I can feel it," I whispered.
Then my bones started cracking.
I had felt this pain many times over the past two years, so it wasn't anything new. In fact, it made me smile even wider.
My eyes turned gold, just like they did in my wolf form.
Then, like a vampire feeding, my eyes darkened as black veins spread around them.
My fangs grew longer.
My body twisted as my bones broke and reshaped themselves.
Until finally—
I transformed.
A massive black wolf stood in the clearing.
The same one from before.
Black fur.
And a white spot over my right eye.
But this time…
It felt different.
The power running through my body was beyond anything I had ever experienced.
I felt unstoppable.
I ran through the forest that night with impossible speed, hunting animals—and a few unlucky humans who happened to cross my path.
And when the sun finally rose…
I was something new.
The first hybrid.
I was deep in the woods when the transformation ended.
Beside me lay the body of a dead man.
I said a quick prayer for him before taking his clothes.
Right now, I was as strong as Klaus would be when he eventually unsealed his wolf side.
And like him—and the other Originals—I could only be killed by the White Oak stake.
Which I planned to change.
Because I wasn't going to remain just an Original Hybrid.
Eventually…
I was going to become something greater.
An Upgraded Original Hybrid.
Or what I preferred to call…
A Lycan.
But that would come later.
For now, I had a promise to keep.
I ran back to Nessa's house faster than I had ever run before.
But when I arrived, there was a problem.
I couldn't go inside.
I had completely forgotten.
Vampires couldn't enter a house unless they were invited.
So I stood outside the door and waited.
Eventually Nessa opened it.
She looked exhausted and pale, probably from the amount of magic she had used the night before.
She threw something at me.
My bag.
"I hope you got what you wanted," she said.
I smiled.
"Oh yes," I said. "I did. And I have you to thank for that."
Just like I promised, I reached into my storage space and pulled out the cure.
From her perspective, it probably looked like I had just grabbed it out of thin air.
"Here you go," I said.
She took it and rushed back inside to help her brother.
I picked up my bag.
"And like I said, Nessa," I continued, "I owe you—and your descendants—a favor. Your bloodline will forever have my protection."
She didn't respond.
She just closed the door.
Well.
Time to start building my network.
Over the next few decades, I began creating connections across Europe.
I turned certain people into vampires—carefully chosen ones—and through them I slowly began controlling towns, trade routes, and eventually entire cities.
At the same time, I made sure that no one knew I was a hybrid.
To the world, I was just another vampire.
Eventually…
The time came for a moment I knew very well.
The year 1492.
England.
The year Klaus and Elijah would meet Katherine.
I didn't want the Originals to discover what I was yet, so I had a witch from the Bennet family—one I had built a close relationship with—alter my vampiric face.
When I used my vampire abilities, I would appear just like a normal vampire.
Nothing unusual.
Nothing suspicious.
I stood inside the grand ballroom.
Nobles danced across the floor while musicians played in the background. Candles lit the massive hall as servants moved through the crowd with trays of wine.
I was dressed in noble attire, pretending to have a polite conversation with an arrogant lord.
But my attention wasn't on him.
It was on the staircase.
Because I had just noticed him.
Niklaus Mikaelson.
He was walking down the stairs to meet Elijah and Katherine.
–
The ballroom was alive with noise and movement. Nobles laughed behind jeweled masks, servants moved through the crowd carrying trays of wine, and musicians played a soft melody that echoed across the high stone walls. Candles hung from massive chandeliers, casting golden light across the polished floor. Everything looked exactly as I remembered from the stories and the show.
And there they were.
Klaus had just reached the bottom of the staircase. Beside him stood Elijah, calm and composed as always, while Katherine stood between them wearing a deep blue dress that made nearly every man in the room stare.
Even knowing what would eventually happen to her, I had to admit something.
Katherine Pierce was beautiful.
Klaus leaned slightly toward her, a charming smile on his face as he began speaking. I couldn't hear every word from where I stood, but I didn't need to. I already knew the scene. Klaus would flirt, intrigue her, and begin the long chain of events that would eventually lead to her learning the truth about the sacrifice.
After a moment, Klaus excused himself from Elijah and guided Katherine away toward the far side of the ballroom.
That left Elijah standing alone.
Perfect.
I excused myself from the noble I had been pretending to speak with and walked calmly across the room. My senses picked up everything—the beating hearts of the humans around me, the scent of wine and perfume, the faint sound of Elijah's heartbeat that was far slower than any human's.
He noticed me approaching long before I reached him. His eyes shifted toward me, studying me with quiet curiosity.
I stopped a few feet away and gave a polite nod.
"Good evening," I said.
Elijah looked me up and down, clearly measuring me. "Good evening," he replied in his smooth, controlled voice. "I don't believe we've been introduced."
"My name is Nero," I said. "And before you ask... yes, I know what you are."
Elijah's expression didn't change much, but I saw the subtle tension in his posture.
"And what exactly do you believe I am?" he asked calmly.
I smiled slightly.
"A vampire," I said quietly enough that no one nearby could hear. "Just like me."
For a brief moment his eyes sharpened.
He studied me again, this time more carefully.
"You're quite bold to approach a stranger and reveal something like that," Elijah said. "Especially in a room full of humans."
"I suppose I am," I replied casually. "But something tells me you aren't the type to panic over something so trivial."
Elijah tilted his head slightly.
"And why is that?"
I shrugged. "Call it instinct."
There was a short silence between us as the music continued to play around the ballroom.
Finally Elijah spoke again. "If you knew what I was, then surely you must have had a reason for approaching me."
"I did," I said.
"And what reason would that be?"
I leaned slightly closer so only he could hear.
"Curiosity."
That actually earned the smallest hint of amusement from him.
"Curiosity?" he repeated.
"Yes," I said. "You see, I've heard quite a few things about you."
"Oh?"
"Yes. Stories. Rumors. The kind that travel among our kind." I picked up a glass of wine from a passing tray even though I had no intention of drinking it. "They say you're the noble one. The honorable one. The brother who believes in rules and dignity."
Elijah's eyes narrowed slightly as he studied me.
"And you came here tonight simply to investigate whether those rumors are true?"
"Something like that."
"And what conclusion have you reached so far?" he asked.
I smiled faintly.
"Well, I've only been speaking to you for about thirty seconds, so I'd say the jury is still out."
Elijah let out a soft chuckle, which seemed to surprise even himself slightly.
"You're an unusual vampire, Mr. Nero."
"I've been called worse."
He glanced briefly across the ballroom toward where Klaus and Katherine were speaking privately.
"You're not here for my brother, are you?" Elijah asked.
"No," I answered honestly. "Though I imagine he's... interesting."
That earned another quiet smile from Elijah.
"That is certainly one way to describe him."
For a moment neither of us spoke as we both watched Klaus talking with Katherine.
Finally Elijah turned back to me.
"So tell me, Nero," he said calmly, "what exactly is it you hope to learn about me tonight?"
I leaned slightly against a nearby pillar.
"The truth," I said.
Elijah raised an eyebrow.
"The truth about what?"
"About you."
He waited.
"Not the rumors," I continued. "Not the legends. Not the stories people tell about the great and honorable Elijah Mikaelson."
His eyes sharpened again when I said his last name, but he didn't react beyond that.
"I want to know what you're actually like," I finished.
"And why would that interest you?"
I shrugged.
"Because men with reputations like yours tend to fall into two categories."
"And those would be?"
"They're either exactly what people say they are," I said calmly, "or they're very, very good at pretending."
Elijah stared at me for a few seconds before answering.
"And which do you believe I am?"
I smiled slightly.
"That," I said, "is what I'm trying to figure out."
For a moment Elijah simply watched me. His eyes were calculating, almost amused.
Finally he nodded slightly.
"Well, Mr. Nero," he said, "if it is the truth you seek, I suspect you may find it... far more complicated than you expect."
I raised my glass slightly in acknowledgment.
"Good," I said. "I prefer complicated."
Across the room, Klaus began leading Katherine toward the balcony.
History was moving forward exactly as it always had.
But now…
I was part of the room where it began.