The night went silent.
Not calm.
Not peaceful.
Silent in the way forests become when a predator enters the food chain.
The two remaining vampires no longer smiled.
Fear had crept into their eyes.
"You felt it too…" one whispered.
The barn vampire's gaze hardened. "He devoured Marcus."
Adrian didn't understand their words fully.
But he understood the feeling inside his body.
It was like cold fire moving through his veins.
Speed hummed in his muscles.
Strength coiled in his bones.
His senses sharpened violently — every leaf, every breath of wind, every heartbeat in the forest screamed in his ears.
His eyes burned brighter red.
Still not fully awakened… but closer.
The vampires attacked together.
This time Adrian moved first.
The ground cracked beneath his feet as he launched forward.
The first vampire barely raised its arms before Adrian's fist slammed into its chest. The impact thundered across the ruins, launching the creature through a burned wall.
Adrian froze for half a second.
That strength…
That was new.
A blur came from the left.
Claws raked across his back, tearing cloth and skin alike. Pain exploded through him — but he didn't fall.
He turned mid-impact and slammed his elbow into the attacker's jaw. Bone cracked. The vampire skidded across the dirt, stunned.
The barn vampire appeared behind him instantly.
A hand clamped around Adrian's throat.
"You are NOT an Alpha of this world!"
The vampire hurled him skyward like a rag doll.
Adrian crashed through the roof of a burned home, wood splintering around him before he slammed into the ground inside the ruins.
For a moment, he didn't move.
Dust floated through moonlight pouring through the broken roof.
His chest rose and fell slowly.
Pain.
So much pain.
Why… am I still weak?
The answer came from deep inside him.
Not weak.
Incomplete.
His claws dug into the dirt as he pushed himself up again.
Outside, the vampires approached cautiously now.
The hunter had become something unfamiliar.
"Your kind doesn't exist here," the barn vampire said coldly.
"This world belongs to us."
Adrian stepped out of the ruins.
Moonlight poured over him.
His red eyes glowed brighter than ever before.
"Then you picked the wrong night to tell me."
The air changed.
The moon broke free from the clouds.
Silver light flooded the village ruins.
Something ancient stirred inside Adrian's chest.
A heartbeat that didn't feel human.
Didn't feel wolf.
Something older.
Something earned.
The vampires sensed it immediately.
Their confidence cracked.
"What… is happening to you?"
Adrian lifted his head slowly.
His voice came out deeper.
Stronger.
Terrifyingly calm.
"I think," he said,
"I'm finally waking up."
The barn vampire snarled.
"Kill him. Now."
They rushed him again.
But the balance of the hunt had changed.
And this time—
Adrian rushed them back.