I Became A Vampire Once Again

Chapter One: The prison (Prologue)

As Xin's eyes slowly fluttered open, the faint, flickering light of the torches that lined the cold, grey stone walls of his prison cell danced across his vision, casting eerie shadows on the ground.

He was lying on a narrow, uncomfortable bed, its thin, worn mattress offering little comfort or support to his weary body. The hard, unyielding surface seemed to press against his very bones, making every movement a painful, laborious effort.

As he struggled to sit up, a dull ache echoed through his head, a lingering reminder of the countless times he had been subjected to the witch's cruel experiments and torture.

Xin's gaze wandered listlessly around the small, dingy cell, taking in the familiar sights of the rusty iron door, the small, barred window high up on one wall, and the crude, wooden table and chair that stood in the corner.

It was a bleak, barren space, devoid of any comfort or warmth, a place where hope itself seemed to wither and die. And yet, despite the many hardships and cruelties he had endured within these cold, grey walls, Xin felt a strange, perverse sense of familiarity, of belonging, to this dismal place.

It was a feeling that he could not quite explain, a feeling that filled him with a sense of despair and desperation.

As he sat there, surrounded by the bleak, unforgiving stone walls of his prison cell, Xin couldn't help but wonder what new torments the day might bring.

Would the witch come for him again, her eyes gleaming with a malevolent light as she subjected him to yet another round of cruel experiments and torture? Or would he be left to languish in solitude, his mind slowly unraveling as the long, empty hours ticked by with agonizing slowness?

Whatever the day might bring, Xin knew that he would face it with the same dull, resigned sense of hopelessness that had become his constant companion in this bleak, unforgiving place.

As the rusty iron door to his cell creaked open, a faint, flickering light spilled in from the corridor beyond, casting eerie shadows on the cold, grey stone walls.

The sound of footsteps echoed through the cell, growing louder with each passing moment, until the witch herself stood before him, her eyes gleaming with a malevolent light that seemed to bore into his very soul.

Her presence was like a dark, foreboding cloud, casting a shadow over the entire cell and filling Xin with a sense of foreboding and dread.

The witch's gaze swept over Xin, her eyes lingering on the scars and bruises that crisscrossed his body, the physical manifestations of the countless torments and cruelties she had inflicted upon him.

A small, cruel smile played on her lips as she took in the sight of his battered and bruised form, a smile that seemed to grow wider and more malevolent with each passing moment.

Xin felt a shiver run down his spine as he met her gaze, his heart sinking with a sense of despair and hopelessness.

"Good morning, Xin," the witch said, her voice dripping with malice and sarcasm, her words echoing through the cell like a cold, mirthless laugh.

"I trust you're feeling well today." The witch's tone was like a slap in the face, a cruel and heartless mockery that seemed to strip away any remaining vestiges of dignity or self-respect that Xin might have possessed.

He knew that she didn't care about his well-being, that she was only interested in using him for her twisted experiments and torture. And so, he didn't bother to respond, his silence a mute testament to the hopelessness and despair that had taken up residence in his heart.

The witch's words hung in the air like a challenge, a cold, calculated taunt that seemed to dare Xin to respond, to react, to show some spark of defiance or resistance.

But Xin knew better than to rise to the bait, to fall into the trap of responding to the witch's provocations. He had learned through long and bitter experience that the witch's words were always laced with malice and sarcasm, that her tone was always dripping with contempt and disdain.

And so, he remained silent, his eyes fixed on the witch's face, his expression a mask of calm, impassive indifference.

The witch's smile grew wider, her eyes glinting with amusement, as she took in Xin's silence. She seemed to enjoy the fact that he refused to respond, that he refused to give her the satisfaction of reacting to her taunts.

But Xin knew that her amusement was short-lived, that she would soon grow tired of his silence and seek to provoke a reaction from him through other means.

And so, he steeled himself for what was to come, his mind racing with thoughts of the various torments and cruelties that the witch might inflict upon him.

"I see you're still as stubborn as ever, Xin," the witch said, her voice dripping with malice and sarcasm. "But that's okay. I like a challenge. And I always get what I want, no matter how long it takes." The witch's words were like a cold, calculated threat, a promise of the torments and cruelties that Xin would soon face.

But Xin knew that she would stop at nothing to achieve her goals, that she would use every trick in the book to break him, to bend him to her will.

The witch's eyes seemed to gleam with an otherworldly intensity as she began to speak, her voice dripping with an unholy excitement. "Today, we're going to try something new, Xin," she said, her words hanging in the air like a promise of unspeakable horrors.

"Something that will change you forever." The witch's tone was like a cold, calculated slap in the face, a brutal reminder of the countless torments and cruelties that Xin had already endured at her hands.

As the witch spoke, Xin felt a sense of creeping dread that seemed to seep into his very bones. He knew that the witch's experiments were always designed to push him to the very limits of human endurance, to test his resolve and his will to survive.

The witch's eyes seemed to bore into Xin's very soul as she continued to speak, her voice dripping with an unholy enthusiasm.

"You see, Xin, I've been studying your... unique physiology," she said, her words dripping with malice and sarcasm.

"And I think I've found a way to... enhance your abilities." The witch's tone was like a cold, calculated threat, a promise of the unspeakable horrors that Xin would soon face.

Xin's heart sank as he listened to the witch's words, his mind racing with thoughts of the countless torments and cruelties that he had already endured.

He knew that the witch's experiments were always designed to push him to the very limits of human endurance, to test his resolve and his will to survive.

And he knew that this new experiment would be no different, that it would be just another chapter in the long, brutal saga of his imprisonment.