The Dawn of the New World

"BARACUS! WHAT'S HAPPENING TO ME?!

Hao Xuan's entire upper body was turning. Instant hair growth and muscle gain were the most obvious changes but his entire skeletal system was changing. Not to mention he couldn't keep the bloodthirst down.

He could smell the blood from miles away and taste it on his tongue just through a single whiff. That's why he ran away, in case he lost control.

*Beep*

"Unknown energy strand has been detected. It is metastasizing the dormant gene abnormalities."

"STOP.IT!"

His voice didn't sound human at all. Each word was followed by a beastly growl that could not be pushed down.

Hao Xuan lept across the grasslands, crossing hundreds of meters each time. In less than a minute he was back in the forest but he did not stop there. His legs did not listen to him, or rather, he didn't realize that he was moving towards something rather than away.

His hunched figure soared over the dark woods, crossing vast distances within a blink of an eye. Having gone far too deep, before Hao Xuan realized that he was surrounded by numerous shadowy figures on all sides. It looked like they were phasing in and out of the material plane like they were real one second and imaginary the next.

The moment he registered their presence Hao Xuan got ready to launch an attack but quickly discerned that they weren't corporeal, or at least if they were, they presented no threat to him.

They were everywhere, of all shapes and sizes, floating in the air, hanging from the trees, running across the forest floor, burrowing into the ground etc, far too many for him to even bother about anymore.

Hao Xuan came to a stop near a small hill overlooking a seemingly shallow body of water. He couldn't detect any signs of life nearby which was good since his legs felt so heavy that he felt like there were chains connecting him to the ground itself.

All he could manage to take were small steps towards the water. He fell to his knees upon reaching it and saw his reflection under the moonlight.

Half of his face was disfigured. It didn't look human at all which horrified even him.

"What's...happening..." he muttered laboriously, "The blood...her blood...did this..."

Hao Xuan was on the verge of losing his sanity.

"BARACUS!"

"To halt the spread of the energies all systems must be shut down. A significantly deadly dose of EMP will be administered directly to the nervous system. Permission required."

"DO IT!"

"Affirmative."

A series of small sparks that could be seen running across his spine flashed one by one for a total of 52 times. With the last one Hao Xuan's body went limp and he fell on his back, freely floating atop the water.

Although he was unconscious, the nanites were working in full force to stop the abnormalities from spreading.

Five minutes passed, and then ten and then twenty. Just when the 30-minute mark had been crossed, the surface of the water slowly moved and another figure floated up from somewhere deep down.

The head showed first, decorated with long, flowing black hair, followed by naked shoulders, a long slender back, and legs.

The female figure slowly walked towards Hao Xuan, stopping right in front of him.

"Warning! Foreign presence detected. Readying defensive measures!"

The automatic warning sounded inside Hao Xuan's head even though he obviously couldn't hear it. But a couple of seconds later-

"...."

"Standing down. Non-hostile presence confirmed."

"There you are. I was looking all over for you," a soft voice sounded right next to Hao Xuan's ears.

She took him in her embrace and slowly floated towards the center of the body of water. If Hao Xuan was awake he would instantly recognize her as Princess Ceni.

She looked much the same, only a little taller than before, perhaps a little older even though it hadn't been that long since they last met but the biggest difference was in her eyes that were a shade of red right now.

An unconscious Hao Xuan and a very much conscious Ceni floated in the water for a couple of minutes until the changes taking place within his body came to a slow halt. Half of his face was inhuman but at least it wasn't spreading anymore.

Ceni extended her right hand and cut open her finger using Hao Xuan's sharp teeth, letting drops of bright red blood run down his gullet.

A couple of seconds passed before Hao Xuan's face and the rest of his body started to return to its original shape. Inside him, Ceni's blood acted as a magnet that attracted all foreign energies and just a few particles of blood that were absorbed through his skin.

All of it concentrated around the small mass on his heart before being absorbed inside.

When she was sure he had returned to normal, Ceni leaned in to kiss the back of his neck with some hesitation.

But the indecisiveness vanished immediately the moment her tongue ran up and down his skin, tasting every inch of it until she couldn't take it anymore.

Her eyes brightened before she suddenly bit into him with four razor-sharp fangs, creating small holes that oozed precious lifeblood. His skin which was harder than steel couldn't up the slightest resistance against those fangs.

She drank three entire mouthfuls before unclasping her jaw from around his neck. Her aura rose and copious amounts of blood energies erupted from within her body.

Her eyes almost rolled back into their sockets from the sheer pleasure. She shivered, hugging Hao Xuan tighter and tighter, pulling him as close as she physically could.

Almost an entire minute later Ceni's body relaxed and she released Hao Xuan. The puncture wounds on his neck closed by themselves.

She stood up, standing on the water as if it was solid ground. Placing one hand on Hao Xuan's chest she felt for his heartbeats.

"Soon. Very soon and you will be all mine," she muttered to herself.

*Shhhhh*

With a sharp hissing sound portions of dark red fabric materialized out of thin air to cover her previously naked form.. She knelt, planting one last kiss on his lips before turning into a red smoke and floating away into the air.