Chapter 11: The Offer
Aarav's heartbeat—if he still had one—pounded in his ears. The air between him and Veyron felt thick, charged with something ancient and unspoken. Every instinct told him this man wasn't just any vampire. He was something more.
Seraphina's posture remained tense, her crimson eyes never leaving Veyron. "You think he'll just trust you? Walk away with you like a lost child?"
Veyron's lips twitched. "Trust is earned. But Kairos and I… we share something deeper than trust."
Aarav clenched his fists. "Stop calling me that. My name is Aarav."
Veyron studied him for a long moment before sighing. "Names change. But who you are does not." His ember-like eyes glowed as he took a slow step forward. "You feel it, don't you? The hunger growing stronger. The instincts sharpening. Soon, resisting will be impossible."
Aarav's throat tightened. He had felt it. The thirst gnawed at him, the raw energy inside him surging at unpredictable moments. Even now, Veyron's presence made it worse, as if being near him awakened something old and buried.
Selene crossed her arms. "Let me guess. You're here to be his 'mentor'? Teach him the ways of the night? How cliché."
Veyron chuckled. "Oh, Selene. So feisty, as always." His expression darkened slightly. "But no. I am not here to play teacher. I am here because the world is shifting, and Kairos is at the center of it. Whether he likes it or not."
Aarav frowned. "What do you mean?"
Veyron tilted his head. "The Order of Hunters won't stop, especially now that they've confirmed your existence. But they are not the only ones watching. Others have begun to take an interest in you."
Seraphina's expression hardened. "The Elders?"
Veyron nodded. "They are… curious. Some wish to guide you. Others wish to destroy you before you can reclaim what you once were."
Aarav felt like the walls were closing in. First, he had to deal with the hunters. Now there were Elders? "Why do they care so much about me?"
Veyron's gaze was unreadable. "Because you are not just another newborn vampire. You are the last of an ancient bloodline—one that was thought to be extinct. A bloodline that once ruled the night."
Aarav's breath caught. "That's impossible."
Veyron smirked. "Is it? And yet, here you stand." He took another step forward, lowering his voice. "Come with me, and I will help you unlock the truth. I will show you what the others fear."
Aarav hesitated. A part of him screamed to refuse. To run. But another part—the part that had awakened the night he fed—whispered that Veyron was right.
"Don't listen to him," Seraphina warned. "He doesn't do anything without a price."
Veyron's smile remained, but his eyes sharpened. "Everything in this world has a price, dear Seraphina. Even survival."
A heavy silence followed.
Aarav looked between Seraphina, Selene, and Veyron. He had a choice to make.
Stay, and continue fighting a battle he barely understood.
Or leave, and uncover the truth about who—or what—he really was.
The weight of destiny pressed down on him.
And for the first time, he wasn't sure if he wanted to carry it.
To be continued…