The city had its own music at night. Neon signs hummed, the air carried the sharp scent of roasted meat and exhaust fumes, and laughter spilled from the doors of nightclubs.
To Leo and Leona, the rhythm of Beijing after dark was intoxicating. Not because of blood, but because it was alive in a way the old kingdoms never were.
Hand in hand, they walked along a narrow street lined with bars. Leona wore a red dress that clung elegantly to her amazing frame, her dreadlocks pinned high, her beauty turning heads without effort.
Leo, broad-shouldered in a simple black jacket, walked with calm dignity. To anyone watching, they were simply a couple enjoying the night.
They found a quiet restaurant and ordered bowls of noodles, eating slowly at a corner table. Leona laughed softly at the way Leo struggled with chopsticks, though his warrior's hands could once wield twin blades that decimated armies.
"You're too stiff," she teased. "Relax your grip."
He glanced at her, a rare smile tugging at his lips. "I have slain beasts with these hands, Rishi. Do not mock me because of wooden sticks."
"Leona," she corrected gently, reminding him of the names they now carried. "We are Leo and Leona here. No one else must know who we were. We left the past for a brand new life and I am already loving it."
He nodded, though his eyes gleamed with something ancient. "Leo," he said quietly, testing the name.
For a time, all was calm. The restaurant's warmth, the clatter of dishes, the scent of broth. It felt almost human. Almost safe.
But peace rarely lasts.
They left the restaurant near midnight, strolling through an alley shortcut back to their apartment. That was when the shadows shifted.
Five men emerged, blocking the narrow path. Their suits were sharp but their eyes cruel. Gold chains glinted at their necks, tattoos crawling across their skin. They carried the arrogance of men who owned the night.
"Well, well," the leader, whose black hair was neatly packed to the back drawled in Mandarin, eyeing Leona with a grin. "What do we have here? Tourists?"
Leona stiffened slightly, but Leo placed a calming hand on hers.
"We mean no trouble," Leo said in perfect Mandarin, his tone low, respectful but firm. "We are just passing through."
The men laughed, circling them. "Foreigners," another sneered. "You don't belong here. But maybe… we can welcome you properly." His gaze slid hungrily over Leona.
Her golden-brown eyes hardened, but she remained silent.
Leo stepped forward, his towering frame casting a shadow over the leader. "I said… we want no trouble."
The man smirked. "You don't want trouble. But what if we do?"
The gang closed in. One shoved Leo's chest. Another reached for Leona's arm.
"Pretty wife," the leader whispered in broken English, "you come with us. We show you good time."
In a blink, Leo's hand shot out, gripping the man's wrist with iron strength. His eyes darkened, the beast beneath his calm stirring. "Do not touch her."
The leader's face twisted in pain before one of his men swung a metal pipe from behind. The blow cracked against Leo's skull.
For a moment, silence. Leo staggered, then collapsed heavily onto the ground. Blood trickled down his temple.
Leona gasped, dropping to her knees beside him. "Leo!"
The gang laughed, surrounding them. The leader crouched, tilting her chin up with the barrel of a pistol. "Don't worry, sweetheart. We will take care of you. He's gone. You come with us now.
I will go easy on you, but my boys can do it roughly if they so wish. After that, we will decide whether to sell you off, or go rounds on you till your body becomes rag."
Rage burned in Leona's chest. She could hear their heartbeats hammering, smell the blood rushing through their veins. For years, she had suppressed the hunger, starved the beast. But now, with her husband lying motionless, the chains around her nature snapped.
Her lips parted, revealing a glint of sharp fangs.
"You have no idea," she whispered, "what you've awakened."
The leader blinked in confusion, then froze as Leo's body twitched. Slowly, impossibly, he rose to his feet. His eyes, once dark and human, now glowed with a golden feral light. His teeth lengthened, his nails sharpened into claws. The wound on his head knitted shut before their eyes.
"You should have left us alone," Leo said, his voice deep and echoing like thunder rolling through caverns.
The men stumbled back in terror. One fired his pistol, the crack deafening in the alley. The bullet struck Leo's chest but he barely flinched. He stepped forward, caught the second bullet mid-air with reflexes faster than sight, and dropped it onto the ground.
Leona rose beside him, her beauty now sharpened into something terrifying. Her eyes glowed violet, her movements sleek and predatory like the feline beast that had cursed them.
Together, they advanced.
The alley exploded into chaos.
Leo moved first, a blur of speed as his clawed hand ripped through one man's throat, spraying blood across the walls. He seized another by the collar, lifting him effortlessly into the air before snapping his spine with a twist.
Leona spun gracefully, kicking a gun from one thug's hand before slashing her nails across his chest. She struck with a dancer's precision, every motion fluid yet deadly.
The leader fired wildly, screaming. Leo blurred forward, swordless yet lethal, his claws slicing the gun in half. He grabbed the man by the jaw and slammed him against the wall, teeth sinking into his neck. The blood was hot, rich, intoxicating. For the first time in decades, Leo drank deeply.
Leona joined him, sinking her fangs into another, her crimson lips glistening. Their victims shrieked and struggled, but there was no escape. The immortals were faster, stronger, unkillable.
The alley became a slaughterhouse. Bones cracked, screams were silenced, and the night filled with the wet sound of feeding.
At last, only silence remained.
The bodies of the mafia men lay sprawled in pools of blood, eyes wide in terror even in death.
Leo stood in the center, chest heaving, blood dripping down his chin. Leona beside him, her red dress now stained darker.
They looked at each other, their eyes burning with the fire of immortals. Centuries of restraint, shattered in one night.
Leona whispered, trembling with both rage and relief: "It has begun again."
Leo wiped the blood from his mouth, his gaze hard as steel. "Then let the world remember who we are."