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Chapter 198 – The Anatomy of a Sleeper
Chapter 198 – The Anatomy of a Sleeper
Seraphis stood motionless in the dim glow of the library’s lanterns. Her mind was a battlefield of questions, each demanding answers that only ancient texts could provide. The existence of the Sleeper defied the natural order of vampires, and she needed to dissect every possible secret before proceeding with her experiments.
She turned back to the search panel, placing her fingertips against its cool stone surface. The silent energy of the library responded instantly.
"Show me all records of vampiric anatomy, physiology, and biological composition."
A deep hum vibrated through the walls. The library’s magic churned, sorting through thousands of books hidden within its depths. Then—
The shelves groaned.
Books began to shift.
Dozens of tomes floated through the air, their spines brushing softly against each other before settling onto the massive stone desk before her. Dust scattered as the oldest volumes landed with a heavy thud. Some were bound in leather as black as the void, while others were wrapped in pale vellum, marked with ancient glyphs.
Seraphis eyed them all.
Then, she opened the first book.
Vampiric Anatomy: The Known and the Unknown
The pages of the tome crackled under her fingers as she turned to the first chapter. The title was elegantly written in blood-red ink.
"The Anatomy of the Immortal: A Study of Vampiric Bodies."
She began reading.
"Unlike mortals, vampires possess bodies that exist in a state of biological stasis. Their flesh does not decay, nor does it regenerate naturally. Instead, they rely on the consumption of blood to sustain and repair damage."
She frowned.
"The heart of a vampire does not beat in the traditional sense. It pulses when needed, circulating stolen blood through the veins only when the body requires rejuvenation. This is why younger vampires display moments of unnatural stillness—because their hearts lie dormant until required."
Seraphis tapped her fingers against the desk.
This was not what she had observed in the Sleeper.
His heart never stopped beating. Even when wounded, it continued its slow, eerie rhythm—unlike the intermittent pulses of traditional vampires.
She flipped through the pages, scanning for abnormalities.
Then—
She found something disturbing.
A New Classification?
A separate chapter, hidden among the anatomical diagrams, caught her attention.
"On Rare Cases of Non-Decaying Vampires."
Seraphis leaned in.
"While most vampires follow the standard cycle of hunger, dormancy, and regeneration, rare specimens have been documented where the body does not enter a dormant state. These beings display an unsettling biological function—one that does not require external sustenance, yet continues to operate as if alive."
Her breath hitched.
The book continued.
"These specimens do not rot. Their blood does not clot. Their tissues, when damaged, seal themselves through unknown means. They are neither fully living nor truly undead. Some scholars speculate that they are not natural vampires at all, but something else—something created, rather than born."
She clenched her jaw.
This aligned too closely with the Sleeper.
Flipping through the next few pages, she scanned the illustrations of dissected vampire corpses—hearts shriveled and blackened with time, veins calcified after centuries without fresh blood.
None of it matched the Sleeper.
Then, at the very end of the book, a single phrase stood out:
"To discover the truth, one must examine the blood itself. For within the blood lies the secret of all things immortal."
Seraphis closed the tome with a resounding snap.
She had read enough.
It was time to return to the Sleeper’s body and conduct a true experiment.
The Experiment Begins
The Sleeper’s corpse lay motionless on the steel examination table in her underground lab. The torches flickered as Seraphis approached, her shadow stretching long against the cold stone walls.
She took a moment to assess the body once more.
The skin was smooth and flawless, yet cold as the grave. Despite the lack of decomposition, there was no sign of life—only that strange, lingering heartbeat.
She placed her hand on the Sleeper’s chest.
Ba-dump. Ba-dump.
Slow. Steady. Unchanging.
She exhaled.
Then, she pulled out a silver scalpel.
Testing the Weaknesses
Seraphis began her experiments with precision.
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Silver Test
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She pressed the silver blade against the Sleeper’s forearm.
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No reaction. The metal, which should have burned ordinary vampires, did nothing.
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She frowned.
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Sunlight Test
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She exposed a small section of the skin to artificial sunlight—a magical crystal designed to mimic the sun’s rays.
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No burns. No decay. Nothing.
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Her unease grew.
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Holy Water Test
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A drop of purified holy water sizzled on contact, but the body did not react. The skin remained intact.
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This was only a partial weakness.
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Wound Regeneration Test
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She made a small incision on the Sleeper’s wrist.
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At first, black blood pooled at the surface.
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Then, before her eyes, the wound sealed itself shut.
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No vampire she had ever encountered could do that without consuming fresh blood.
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Her hands trembled.
This was not a vampire. At least, not in any form known to her.
Which meant she was dealing with something entirely new.
Drawing the Sleeper’s Blood
Seraphis retrieved a glass vial and a thin syringe infused with anti-coagulation magic.
She carefully inserted the needle into the Sleeper’s jugular vein.
The moment the first drop of blood entered the vial—
The room grew colder.
A chill unlike any other seeped into her bones, making her breath hitch. She glanced down.
The blood inside the vial was not red.
Not even black.
It was something in between—dark violet, swirling like mist inside the glass. The liquid did not behave like normal blood. It pulsed, moving as though alive.
Seraphis set the vial down, heart pounding.
This was wrong.
She grabbed a second vial and repeated the process, extracting more. The same violet-black blood filled the glass, twisting and churning as if whispering to itself.
Then—
The Sleeper’s body twitched.
She froze.
For the first time, since she had brought it to the lab—
The Sleeper moved.