Blood and Betrayal

The castle walls trembled as the heavy iron doors groaned open. Elias stood beside Dracula, staring at the figures stepping into the war room.

The knights entered first—five of them, clad in silver-plated armor, their swords gleaming with the faint glow of enchanted runes. Their leader, a scarred man with deep-set eyes, removed his helmet and kneeled before Dracula.

"Lord Dracula, we have come to talk," he said steadily. "Humanity has forsaken us. But you already knew that."

Elias narrowed his eyes. "Forsaken?"

The knight gave him a hard look. "Not all monsters are born. Some of us were made. Our own kind hunts us now."

As if answering an unseen call, shadows moved beyond the door. From the darkness, other figures emerged—inhuman, twisted, powerful.

A Blood Hound—a humanoid creature with elongated limbs, black veins pulsating under sickly pale skin, and a face half-consumed by a snout-like maw. It sniffed the air, its red eyes locking onto Elias.

A Hollow Stalker—a gaunt man with bones protruding unnaturally from his skin, his fingers ending in razor-sharp claws. His hollow eyes burned with green fire.

A Nightborn Beast—a creature that walked upright like a man but had the flesh of a beast, its skin covered in ancient runes that pulsed with forbidden magic.

These were the hunters.

Once human, now cursed by their own kind.

The knight continued. "We offer you our blades, our strength. Let us fight at your side, for there is no place for us in the world of men."

Dracula studied them, then smirked. "So, even the hunters become the hunted. How poetic."

But before he could respond—

The castle doors exploded.

A holy light flooded the room, burning with divine fury. A spear of pure silver crashed into the stone floor, splitting it apart.

The real hunters had arrived.

From the smoke, figures emerged—clad in priestly robes, enchanted armor, wielding weapons designed to slay the unnatural.

One stepped forward, a high priest of the church, his robes billowing, his hands crackling with golden energy.

"Burn them all."

The battle erupted in chaos.

Elias barely had time to move before the Blood Hound lunged, tearing through a priest with its claws. The knights drew their swords, clashing against the blessed steel of the hunters. The Hollow Stalker vanished into the shadows, reappearing behind an archer and snapping his neck.

Elias's instincts took over.

A hunter wielding twin daggers rushed him, his blades glowing with celestial fire. Elias barely dodged, his body moving faster than it should. His own hands moved on their own, slashing across the hunter's chest.

Blood sprayed.

Elias froze. The man collapsed, lifeless.

He had killed him.

More came.

A silver net was cast over him, burning his flesh, but he tore through it with strength he didn't know he had. He fought—not out of loyalty to Dracula, but because he had no choice.

More bodies fell.

Then, in the chaos—

Selene appeared.

Her wide, terrified eyes locked onto him. She saw the blood on his hands.

"Elias…?" Her voice was barely a whisper.

He turned to her, his breath ragged. "Selene, I—"

But she stepped back, trembling. "You… you're with them."

"I didn't have a choice!" Elias pleaded. "They attacked first—I had to fight!"

Her hands trembled. "You killed them, Elias. Look at yourself!"

She lifted her bow, her fingers shaking as she nocked a holy arrow. "Stay back!"

Elias's heart pounded. "Selene, please—"

She let the arrow fly.

The knight beside Elias moved faster than thought, intercepting it mid-air. He snarled and lunged at Selene, his blade flashing for the kill—

Elias moved without thinking.

He caught the knight's wrist, his grip crushing, his voice thunderous.

"As your next king, thou shalt not touch this maiden or die!"

The entire room fell silent.

Dracula turned, his red eyes gleaming with something unreadable. He saw it.

The fire in Elias's gaze. The power in his voice.

For the first time, Dracula's smirk faded into something serious.

He gestured. "Do as he says."

The knights hesitated—then obeyed.

Selene stared at Elias, her body trembling, unable to process what had just happened.

Dracula walked forward and, without hesitation, struck Selene across the head.

She crumpled to the ground, unconscious.

Elias whirled on him. "What are you—"

"She saw too much," Dracula said simply. "You want to save her? Then make sure she doesn't ruin what comes next."

Elias clenched his fists, looking at Selene's still form.

The war had begun.

And he no longer knew which side he belonged to.