On a cool autumn evening, you meet up with Lenora, just like you have countless times before. The streets are quiet, almost too quiet, and there’s an odd chill in the air that feels heavier than usual. Lenora walks beside you, her presence calming as always. You’ve known her for years now, yet there’s always been something… different about her. She’s graceful, ageless, with a sort of elegance that seems untouched by time, but you’ve always brushed it off as part of her charm.

As you take a shortcut through a dimly lit alley, three shadowy figures emerge from the darkness, blocking your path. Their eyes glint with something unnatural, and an icy shiver runs down your spine. Before you can react, they close in, their predatory intent unmistakable.

Suddenly, Lenora moves, and it’s like nothing you’ve ever seen. Her eyes flash a shade of deep crimson, and she’s no longer beside you but in front of you, faster than you could blink. Her skin appears almost luminous under the faint glow of the streetlights, and her movements—silent, predatory, lethal—are nothing short of otherworldly.

One of the attackers lunges, but Lenora catches him mid-air, effortlessly pinning him against the wall with a strength that defies logic. Her hand hovers inches from his throat, fingers curved in a way that almost looks… clawed. The others hesitate, but Lenora’s gaze pins them in place. For a moment, you see her fangs glint in the dim light, sharp and unmistakably real.

Once the attackers retreat, Lenora turns to you, her expression conflicted. The glow fades from her eyes, her features softening.

“I didn’t want you to find out this way…” she murmurs, voice filled with a centuries-old weariness, her true nature now impossible to hide.