"At exactly 11:12 a.m. today, a once-in-a-century total solar eclipse will pass over New York City. All residents are advised to wear protective glasses and enjoy this extraordinary spectacle together."
Inside the speeding police cruiser, the radio repeated the announcement in a steady loop, though the signal was distorted by a constant hiss. The interference grew worse as the sky darkened, as if the eclipse itself was swallowing not just the light, but the airwaves too. The city outside the windows was already slipping into an eerie twilight, shadows stretching unnaturally across the streets.
"You're going to destroy the entire district!"
Yin Fu snapped, his voice tight with anger as he glared at the officer beside him. His hands trembled slightly, and every time he thought about David's grotesque transformation, a chill crawled down his spine. What unsettled him even more were the dozens of missing individuals who had already been dismissed and sent home, treated like nothing more than routine cases.
Three days had passed since the incident began, and now he was being escorted to the West Precinct. The weight of everything he had seen pressed down on him, making it harder to breathe with each passing second.
"Commissioner Yin Fu," the officer said with a casual grin, clearly unconcerned, "you're one of the top experts at the New York CDC. And you're seriously claiming people are turning into monsters?"
His tone was light, almost amused, as though the entire situation was beneath consideration. Orders from above were all he cared about, not whatever panic Yin Fu was trying to stir up.
"You don't understand—"
Boom!
A deafening roar shattered the moment, echoing through the street like an explosion. Pedestrians screamed as panic spread instantly, people scattering in every direction. Yin Fu jerked his head toward the windshield and saw it clearly—a man moving with stiff, unnatural motions, his body jerking like a puppet, as he slammed a woman violently to the ground.
"Shit!"
The officer beside him reacted immediately, throwing the car door open and jumping out. The driver followed, both men moving with trained precision as they rushed toward the disturbance, guns already in hand.
"Wait! Something's wrong!"
Yin Fu shouted, his instincts screaming at him to stay back. His eyes swept across the dim street, now cloaked in the unnatural gloom of the eclipse. The sky above was choked with darkness, turning midday into something closer to dusk.
But neither officer paid him any attention.
They advanced with weapons raised, aiming directly at the man crouched over the fallen woman. Up close, the horror became unmistakable. Flesh-like tendrils writhed from the creature's mouth, plunging into the victim's neck as it fed, its pale skin stretched tight over something no longer human.
"What the hell are you doing, sir?!"
"Roar!"
The creature lifted its head, revealing blood-slicked lips and glowing crimson eyes. With a guttural roar, it lunged toward the officers, its movements explosive and feral.
Gunfire erupted instantly.
Shots rang out in rapid succession, muzzle flashes cutting through the dim street as the officers unloaded their weapons. Pedestrians nearby screamed and fled, the chaos spiraling out of control as the creature absorbed the impact of the bullets without slowing.
Then, in the next instant, something even worse happened.
Under the horrified gaze of everyone present, the creature's mouth split open again. Those grotesque tendrils shot forward like living spears, piercing straight into one officer's neck with brutal force.
"Shit!"
The second officer emptied his magazine in a panic, firing until the slide locked back. It made no difference. The creature barely reacted, its body riddled with bullet holes that should have dropped any normal person.
Realizing the truth too late, the surviving officer turned and ran.
Inside the car, Yin Fu stared at the scene in disbelief, his mind struggling to process what he was seeing. The creature finished feeding and immediately lunged at another fleeing pedestrian, moving with terrifying speed.
His gaze swept across the street, and his blood ran cold. There wasn't just one of them. Several figures in the crowd were moving the same way—stiff, erratic, predatory.
This wasn't an isolated incident.
This was everywhere.
Seizing the moment, Yin Fu forced himself into action. He rushed out of the car and sprinted toward the fallen officer, who lay motionless on the pavement. Kneeling beside him, Yin Fu quickly searched his pockets, his fingers shaking until he found what he needed—the key.
He unlocked the handcuffs binding his wrists, yanked them free, and didn't hesitate for a second longer.
He turned and ran.
…
Inside the dim antique shop, Nora stood facing the old man, her expression tight with anxiety.
"Why won't you believe me?"
Abraham's voice rose with frustration, his temper finally breaking. The television behind him flickered nonstop, broadcasting the unfolding chaos across the city. A blurred clip of a creature—something unmistakably inhuman—flashed across the screen, and Nora's face went pale.
She knew what she was looking at.
This wasn't an outbreak anymore.
It was a full-scale collapse.
"Sir… what are we supposed to do?"
Jim's voice cracked as he spoke, regret written all over his face. He looked like a man who had just realized how badly he had misjudged everything.
"Kill the Blood Ancestor."
"Blood Ancestor?"
"He's the source of all of this," Abraham said, his voice firm and absolute. "Kill him, and every infected vampire dies with him."
He turned his gaze toward the glass doors at the front of the shop. Outside, people were running in blind panic, their screams muffled by the heavy curtains that had been pulled shut. Even without seeing clearly, he knew what was happening out there.
The vampires had already found them.
The shop was dim, lit only by what little filtered through the covered windows. Nora's phone suddenly rang, cutting through the suffocating silence. She glanced at the screen, and her expression shifted instantly.
"Yin Fu?"
"We're at Greer Street Antiques, on the West Side!"
She hung up, relief flooding her face. Jim, standing nearby, seemed to come to a decision and took a step toward the door, as if he intended to leave.
Abraham stopped him immediately.
"The streets are crawling with vampires right now," he said sharply, locking eyes with Jim. "You step out there, you don't come back."
Jim sagged slightly, the fight draining out of him. He wanted to find his wife, but even he understood that walking into that chaos would be suicide.
Nora wasn't much better off. Her hands trembled as she thought about Yin Fu making his way through the city alone, surrounded by monsters.
Time dragged on until the darkness deepened further. The eclipse cast the city into something resembling midnight, even though it was still afternoon.
Then came the knock.
Rapid. Urgent.
Everyone froze.
Under Abraham's watchful gaze, Nora moved cautiously toward the door. She lifted the curtain just enough to peek outside.
The street was in complete chaos.
Yin Fu stood at the entrance, pounding on the door while constantly glancing over his shoulder, his posture tense and alert.
The moment she saw he was alive, Nora threw the door open and pulled him inside, wrapping him in a tight embrace despite Abraham's guarded stare.
"The world's gone completely insane."
Yin Fu let out a bitter laugh as he steadied himself. After a brief moment, he quickly recounted what he had seen on the way here. His voice was strained, each word carrying the weight of what he'd survived. Streets that were once packed with people were now scattered with bodies and prowled by bloodthirsty creatures.
"Follow me."
After giving Yin Fu a quick once-over to confirm he wasn't infected, Abraham turned and led them deeper into the shop. He opened a hidden door, revealing a concealed room beyond, and stepped inside without hesitation.
The others followed, their expressions shifting as they took in the sight.
The room was lined with weapons—old, brutal tools designed for hunting large animals. Blades, traps, and firearms filled the space, each one maintained with meticulous care.
"What caused this?"
Yin Fu asked, his brow furrowed as he tried to reconcile everything he had seen.
"…The Blood Ancestor," Abraham replied slowly. "He is the root of it all. And if we want to understand the truth… we need to retrieve something."
His voice grew distant, as though he was pulling the words from old, painful memories.
"Anyone turned into a vampire can only be killed by severing the head. Silver blades and sunlight are the only weapons that can truly destroy them."
He opened a drawer and pulled out a box of silver bullets, scattering them across the table with deliberate care.
"Vampires?"
Yin Fu echoed, disbelief creeping into his voice despite everything he had witnessed. Even now, part of him struggled to accept it.
"Yin Fu, we don't have the luxury of doubt anymore," Nora said firmly, her tone leaving no room for argument.
"This world is far more complicated than you think," Abraham added, his aged face set with unwavering resolve. "I've been hunting that thing for nearly a century. I know exactly how terrifying it is."
His gaze hardened as he continued.
"They are the darkest creatures to ever exist. Since the dawn of humanity, they've hidden in the shadows, feeding on human blood and using us as their hosts, their vessels, their livestock."
As he spoke, his eyes drifted toward a glass container resting on the table.
The others followed his gaze, their attention drawn to the object inside.
It was a heart.
Preserved in clear liquid, suspended in silence.
Abraham's voice lowered, heavy with something deeper than anger.
"This… is my wife…"
....
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