The Forgotten War

Before the first system awakened,

Before the vampire bloodlines fractured,

There was a war not of people—

But of designs.

---

The war room had never felt colder.

Not because of the stone.

Not even because of the shade curling off the Codex shard Quinn held in his hand.

But because of the silence that stretched between them.

Quinn had not spoken for two full minutes.

Lyle waited, his arms crossed, the cut on his side freshly stitched but aching. His blood hadn't fully replenished—not with the way the Hollow One had torn through his defenses.

Finally, Quinn breathed in. Sat down.

"You weren't supposed to find one of them this soon," he said.

"The creature?"

"The result of a system experiment that predates the Codex."

Lyle frowned. "Predates... the Codex?"

Quinn nodded. "Before our systems were bound to rings and books and cores—before rules—you had architects. Not gods. Not demons. Just people who tried to engineer evolution."

"And failed?"

"They failed to control it," Quinn said, "but the systems worked."

He leaned forward, clasping his hands.

"They designed entities—called Hollow Casters—intended to absorb ability blueprints from hosts and refine them. Think of them like walking system updates. Learning machines."

"But they started eating people."

"Because someone turned them loose. Someone who didn't want control—just extinction."

Lyle sat back. "Why are you telling me this now?"

Quinn tossed him a crystal—flat and hexagonal, with a deep violet core.

It shimmered with script too ancient for the Codex to interpret.

"Because now you're part of the list."

"The one with the red string?"

"Yes. But not just a target. A variable. And the Council doesn't like variables."

---

Later that day, Lyle found Muka outside the Veinhold crypts.

She stood in the archway, staring at a faded mural depicting a shadow beast kneeling before a masked figure.

He approached, but she spoke before he could.

"You let it copy you."

He nodded. "Didn't have a choice."

"And now it knows your rhythm. Your glyph tempo."

"I already changed them."

"That won't stop it forever."

She turned, her gaze harder than usual.

"Quinn doesn't get it," she said. "But I do. You're not just syncing with the vampire system. You're changing it. You'll either refine the path—or become the reason it's destroyed."

Lyle met her stare. "Why do you care?"

"Because I've watched someone fall into that path before. And I didn't stop him."

"Quinn?"

Muka didn't answer.

But the way her eyes softened said enough.

Then she pulled a small scroll from inside her sleeve.

"I had this drawn up three days ago. Enrollment request. Back to the academy."

Lyle blinked. "You're leaving?"

"No," she said. "I'm going back. With you."

"You're enrolling?"

She nodded. "As a student. My record's been sealed. My age forged. I'll be a first-year, just like you."

He narrowed his eyes. "Why go through all that?"

"Because you won't be able to hide what you're becoming much longer. And when others come looking, they won't ask questions."

"Let me guess. You'll be there to stab them in the ribs."

"Only if you don't beat me to it."

They shared a quiet moment.

Then she added, "Also, I like your hair."

"What?"

"Forget I said anything."

---

That night, Lyle sat cross-legged in his chamber, the Codex floating in front of him.

> [Warning: External System Traces Detected]

[Bone Claw Sync – Stable]

[Vampire System Integration – 47%]

[Shadow Lineage Capacity Surpassed – New Path Emerging]

He stared at the words.

A new path?

Before he could ask more, his hand moved on its own.

The black iron ring pulsed once.

Then the dimensional ring glowed faintly.

And something... shifted.

The rings buzzed in resonance.

Then—

> [Synchronization Detected – Artifact Merge Process Available]

[Warning: This process is irreversible]

[Do you wish to proceed?]

Lyle paused.

Then spoke aloud.

"Yes."

---

The moment he confirmed, both rings heated against his skin.

The Codex trembled.

And power—raw, untamed—surged through his arms.

He gritted his teeth as symbols burned into his wrist—one curved and elegant, the other jagged and ancient.

The rings dissolved into light.

And embedded themselves into his soul.

> [Artifact Merge Complete]

[New Trait: Vampiric Arcanum – Fusion of Shadowblood and Arcane Codex]

[System Duality Detected – Adjusting Path Parameters…]

Lyle collapsed to one knee.

But when he rose—

He was lighter.

Not weaker.

More… balanced.

And a new screen opened before his eyes.

> [Unique Class Path Unlocked: Arcane Vampire – Tier II]

Access to Dual Systems Enabled

Fusion Abilities Pending Unlock

Shop Access – Partial

Hidden Feature: Legacy Bloodbond – Active

He exhaled.

Whatever came next—

He wasn't just ready.

He was becoming.