章 8: Bloodsuckers Anonymous
(A/N - Damn guys, 7 chapters in and there are already people hating on me, my choice of FML and the fact I'm not writing their perfect novel. Bloody hilarious. Much love to the people who are spreading positivity and helpful comments.)
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A gnawing emptiness clawed at Gabriel's gut, worse than any hunger he'd ever felt before. It was a hollowness that was foreign to him. Parking the car back in the garage, he practically sprinted for the kitchen.
Ripping open a bag of chips, he shoved a handful in his mouth, barely tasting them. Chugging some water, he sank onto the couch, trying to catch his breath. The hunger seemed to lessen for a second, but then it roared back even stronger.
"Damn it!" he cursed.
He glanced out the window at the dark forest beyond. An unsettling thought wormed its way into his mind. Maybe he didn't need chips. Maybe he needed something else entirely.
"I need blood, that's what I need. Maybe that workout stirred something up inside me."
Throwing open the back door, he vanished into the night. He moved like a shadow, silent and swift, weaving through the trees. His own agility surprised him. He felt impossibly light, leaping from branch to branch with incredible power.
'Alucard's speed, Garou's flexibility and adaptability,' he thought, a strange sense of familiarity washing over him, like these movements were natural to him. A dark smile spread across his face. He could move unseen if he wanted to.
Reaching the edge of a clearing, he stopped. His eyes, usually a warm gold, flickered to a chilling crimson, the deepest red imaginable. He scanned the darkness, searching for prey.
A rustle in the bushes sent a jolt through him. There, by a small lake, a deer grazed peacefully.
Moving like a whisper, Gabriel stalked towards the unsuspecting animal. 'It's okay,' he tried to reassure himself. 'People hunt deer all the time. It's just getting meat straight from the source.'
With a burst of speed, he launched himself at the deer, landing silently behind it. His left hand shot out, wrapping around its neck in a steely grip. Almost on autopilot, his head snapped forward. His fangs, elongated and razor-sharp, pierced the deer's flesh.
A wave of sweetness flooded his senses as he drank deeply. The blood was warm, filling him with a primal satisfaction. Unlike anything he'd ever felt, it calmed the gnawing emptiness within him.
Gabriel pushed himself away from the deer's still body, the metallic tang of blood clinging to his tongue. "Damn," he muttered, licking his lips in surprise. "That was... unbelievably good."
He glanced around nervously, half expecting something to jump out at him. Satisfied there were no immediate threats, he turned and started back towards the house. But his movements felt even more agile, nowhere near the speed and power he'd had earlier.
"So, that's it, then?" he mumbled to himself. "Human food works, but I gotta have blood every so often. How often, who knows?"
Reaching the edge of his property, Gabriel slowed down to a walk. 'Maybe some martial arts classes,' he thought. "Being strong is great, but knowing how to fight properly is better than swinging wildly."
Deciding on a plan, he entered the house, locking the doors behind him with a click.
Upstairs in his room, Gabriel peeled off his clothes, the events of the night still swirling in his head. A quick shower helped wash away the grime and the memory of the kill.
As he lay back on the bed, a strange realization dawned on him. "Seems my body adjusts to changes pretty damn fast. No need for weeks of training to get used to this new strength."
Stretched out on the bed, Gabriel felt a presence, a shadowy mass writhing deep within him. It touched the core of his being, a foreign entity pulsing with dark energy. Closing his eyes, he forced himself to quiet the panic and focus on it.
'What is this?'
As his awareness drifted towards the source, a sudden pull yanked him inward. It was like a mental click, and then a flood. Information surged through him, overwhelming in its intensity. It spoke of Alucard, of powers living within him; godlike regeneration, the ability to shapeshift, to read minds and absorb memories, to move objects with his will and manipulate very souls.
"So, that's it," Gabriel muttered, processing the revelation.
"Needed blood to truly unlock the vampire within. Guess God wasn't exactly forthcoming about that detail." He sighed, stretching his arms behind his head as the possibilities danced in his mind.
"Soul manipulation, that's the game changer. Practically immortal compared to these other bloodsuckers. Every human, every creature I absorb… another life added to mine."
The knowledge unfolded further, revealing a vast internal space, a soul bank teeming with three million stolen essences. Hidden deep within him, they served as a shield, a buffer protecting his own soul and mind; a twisted form of immortality.
A sense of awe mixed with unease settled over him. He wasn't just a vampire anymore. He was something far more potent.
A predatory grin, wide and fierce, stretched across Gabriel's face as he digested the information. "There's gotta be more," he muttered, the memory of Alucard's power flickering like a half-forgotten dream.
"Maybe more blood unlocks more abilities." The thought sent a thrill through him, a dark counterpoint to the unease churning in his gut.
His thoughts moved from one subject to another, the mental gymnastics working in overdrive.
He needed a plan. Being a trust fund kid wasn't a bad gig, but for the future he envisioned, relying on someone else's money wouldn't cut it. Steeling his resolve, Gabriel pushed himself off the bed and strode to his PC. The familiar whir of the machine booting up was a comforting sound. With a practiced click, he opened his web browser.
Tapping his finger on the desk, he hummed an old, forgotten tune.
Stock market? Using his knowledge from his past life to invest could work, but would the trends be the same here? Or maybe writing? A novelist.
The idea of grinding away at a career when he could make passive income with minimal effort held little appeal.
Fingers flying across the keyboard, Gabriel dove into his web search. First, he went after the old reliables, the companies from his past life that he recalled from school lessons or news snippets. Names danced in his head. A tech giant here, a groundbreaking pharmaceutical company there. Had their meteoric rise mirrored itself in this world?
But Gabriel wasn't a one-trick pony. He backtracked, searching for the novels that had devoured his nights in school and public libraries. Genre didn't matter; fantasy, sci-fi, heart-wrenching romance. As long as the story resonated, it was fair game. He wouldn't limit himself.
Lost in the search, Gabriel spent his night deeply rooted in his seat, making plans for the future.
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