The crypt doors groaned open.
Dust spiraled upward, catching the dim torchlight as Lucas stepped down into the forgotten chamber. The stench of time—stone, rot, and dried blood—hung thick in the air. This wasn't part of the castle's original layout. This was deeper, older. Sealed for a reason.
Two guards held torches behind him. Their faces were pale despite their vampire blood. They could feel it too—something wrong in the air, like a breath held too long.
Lucas opened his system interface.
---
[System Alert: Unclassified Structure Detected]
Analyzing...
Result: Bloodbound Vault – Progenitor Class (Suppressed State)
Status: 5 of 6 Seals Intact
Warning: Seal #6 – Weakening
---
The chamber was vast. Pillars lined the sides, etched with symbols long erased by time. At the center sat a black stone sarcophagus, massive and bound by thick iron chains inlaid with silver and glyphs that still flickered faintly with magic.
Lucas stepped closer, boots scraping against the dry floor.
The glyphs whispered.
> Here lies the hunger that broke the bloodline...
Let him never wake...
Blood is the lock. Blood is the key.
He reached out instinctively, fingertips brushing one of the chains. The sarcophagus pulsed once—like a heartbeat.
His system flared.
---
[Containment Alert: SEAL #6 Fractured]
Hostile Class Detected: Ancient / Unknown / Progenitor
Threat Level: ???
Effect: Faction morale -2% | Feral proximity aggression increased
Suggested Action: Reseal or Observe – Direct engagement discouraged.
---
Lucas stepped back.
This… was not a mere crypt. It was a prison.
He glanced to the guards. "No one enters here again. Not without me."
He turned to the wall and drove a jagged sigil into the stone with his dagger—part command, part warning.
> Do not open what you cannot cage.
---
That evening, a thin trail of crimson mist seeped from beneath the crypt and into the night air. Animals in the nearby woods scattered. A raven dropped from the sky mid-flight.
The pulse of something ancient stirred in the stone.
And far away, a sleeper blinked once—slow and unseen—behind the sealed lid.
---
[System Notification]
Passive Effect Unlocked: Whisper of the Deep Bloodline
Effect: Slight stat increase when standing on original vampire ruins. Possible mutation unlocked upon second Bloodline Archive piece.
---
Lucas returned to his keep in silence. The stars offered no comfort. He felt the presence watching from below.
Not awakened.
Not yet.
But dreaming.
And those dreams were starting to rise.