Desmond wasn't going to sit around waiting for the next attack.
He knew the vampires were watching him. The werewolves were watching him. Hell, even Elias was hiding things from him.
Enough was enough.
If he was an anomaly, then it was time to start acting like one.
A New Kind of Training
After Elias's brutal lesson the previous day, Desmond knew he had to shift his mindset. He couldn't just react anymore—he had to be proactive.
So he started training differently.
Every time Elias attacked, Desmond didn't just dodge—he studied. The angle of attack, the force, the timing. Everything.
And when he struck back, he didn't just throw punches—he tested. How much force did it take to make Elias flinch? How fast could he move before Elias had to actually block?
Elias noticed.
"You're calculating," Elias observed after an intense sparring session.
Desmond wiped sweat from his brow. "Of course I am. You think I'm just here to take beatings?"
Elias smirked. "Most people would."
"I'm not most people."
Elias studied him for a moment before nodding. "Good. Because soon, it won't just be me you're fighting."
Desmond tensed. "What does that mean?"
Elias simply tossed him a wooden stake. "It means you need to learn how to kill."
The First Hunt
That night, Elias took Desmond out into the woods.
Desmond wasn't sure what they were doing at first, but when he saw the shape moving through the trees ahead, his heart stopped.
A vampire.
It was feeding—draining some poor hiker dry.
Desmond clenched his jaw. He knew vampires were monsters, but seeing one in action? It was different.
Elias handed him a real stake this time. "Your turn."
Desmond hesitated. "You want me to just—"
"Yes."
The vampire suddenly snapped its head up. It had sensed them.
It let go of its victim and vanished.
Desmond barely had time to react before it was on him.
Sharp claws slashed toward his throat—he barely ducked in time. He rolled away, coming up with the stake in hand.
The vampire lunged again, faster than anything he'd fought before.
Desmond reacted on instinct—he threw up his shield.
The vampire bounced off mid-air, as if hitting an invisible wall. It snarled, momentarily disoriented.
Elias didn't interfere. This was Desmond's fight.
Desmond gritted his teeth. He had to finish this fast.
He lunged forward, feinting left before twisting right. The vampire swiped wildly, but Desmond ducked under its claws—
—and drove the stake straight into its chest.
The vampire stiffened. Then it collapsed, body already starting to decay.
Desmond took a shaky breath. His heart was pounding.
He had just killed something.
Elias walked up beside him. "How does it feel?"
Desmond looked down at his hands. "Like I just survived."
Elias nodded. "Then you did it right."
Understanding the Enemy
Back at Elias's hideout, Desmond sat across from him, still gripping the now-bloodstained stake.
Elias poured himself a drink. "Now you see why survival isn't enough."
Desmond nodded slowly. "They're faster than I thought."
"And stronger."
Desmond looked up. "Why do they fear me?"
Elias smirked. "Because they don't know what you are. And neither do you."
Desmond frowned. "Then let's find out."
Elias raised an eyebrow. "How?"
Desmond's eyes darkened with determination.
"We hunt more of them."