Level: 9
⸻
5:47 PM — Hospital Room 14
Zack was mid-sentence when it happened.
His mother was talking about something small.
Normal.
A story about when he was six and tried to fix a broken toaster.
He was smiling.
Then—
Flatline.
The heart monitor screamed.
Nurses rushed in instantly.
Zack stood frozen.
"What happened?" he demanded.
One nurse checked the IV.
"Her medication spiked."
"That's not possible."
"It just did."
They worked fast.
Defibrillator ready.
Shock.
Her body jolted.
Shock again.
Zack's fists trembled.
Steel threatening to form.
If this is hunters—
He's killing someone tonight.
Finally—
Her heart rhythm stabilized.
The room calmed.
Doctors reassured him.
"Equipment malfunction," one said.
Zack didn't buy it.
He stepped out into the hallway.
And he smelled it.
Not vampire.
Chemical.
Foreign.
Precise.
⸻
The Device
Zack moved two floors down immediately.
Utility closet.
Behind a panel.
He ripped it open.
Small device.
Embedded in hospital wiring.
Timer still blinking.
He crushed it.
Message flashed.
CHEMICAL INTERFERENCE DETECTED
TARGET: ROOM 14
His breathing slowed.
They didn't just study him.
They tested her.
⸻
Text Message
Phone buzzed.
Unknown number.
"Imagine if we used a higher dose."
No emoji.
No threat language.
Just fact.
Zack's jaw tightened.
Another text.
"You kill predators. We remove threats. Let's talk."
He didn't respond.
He turned off his phone.
Slowly.
Deliberately.
⸻
Rooftop — Rage Control
Zack stood on the hospital roof.
Hands shaking.
He wanted to hunt.
Rip through every surveillance van.
Every signal.
Every hunter.
But that's what they want.
Emotion spike.
Loss of control.
Public event.
He breathed.
In.
Out.
Kael's words replayed.
Hunters test weaknesses.
Fine.
Then he removes the weakness.
Not her.
The access.
⸻
Phase Shift
Zack returned to the hospital security office.
He didn't break in.
He walked in calmly.
Security guard looked up.
"Can I help—"
Zack leaned in close.
Silver eyes visible for half a second.
"I need access logs for the last 12 hours."
The guard hesitated.
Then complied.
No violence.
Just presence.
Zack scanned quickly.
Two fake badges used.
Both temporary.
Both scrubbed from system.
But one mistake.
Entry time stamp too precise.
Military pattern.
Every 90 minutes.
He memorized it.
Hunters aren't random.
They're disciplined.
Which means they regroup at disciplined locations.
⸻
Hunter Base — Same Night
The female hunter stood reviewing hospital footage.
She watched the moment Zack found the device.
Watched the rage flicker in his eyes.
Then watched him calm himself.
She nodded slowly.
"He's evolving faster than projected."
Her partner asked,
"Phase Four?"
She paused.
"No."
Silence.
"He hasn't killed any of us."
"So?"
"So we don't escalate lethality yet."
She leaned forward.
"But next time, we don't miss."
⸻
Zack's Decision
Back on the rooftop—
Zack stared at the city lights.
Level 9.
Hunters testing.
Circle watching.
He's in the middle.
But now—
He has clarity.
He doesn't chase randomly.
He doesn't respond emotionally.
He studies.
He hunts them back.
Quietly.
He whispered to the skyline:
"You touched the wrong thing."
⸻
System Notification
PROTECTIVE THRESHOLD TRIGGERED
FOCUS STABILIZED
COMBAT PRECISION +2%
No level up.
But something inside him hardened.
Cleaner.
Sharper.
Less reckless.
⸻
End of Episode 12.