Chapter Six: A New Dan Ranlone

Dansk's presence, while not to Darius's liking, was necessary. He felt a little uncomfortable with his presence, but he was able to tolerate him for the sake of Daniel's well-being.

“I'd like to ask you a favor, sir,” he said to Darius as soon as he walked into Christopher's lab. Despite the fact that the latter did not answer him and only limited himself to observing him, Dansk continued speaking.

“My presence here must not be revealed to Zander... He’s not as tolerant as you are. No one must know that I have communication with your brother. Can you and your family do me that favor?”

“It won't be known by me,” Darius said after a few seconds and after thinking about it. “And neither did my wife. Right, honey?”

“I won't say anything,” Amira agreed. “Christopher says you can help him treat my son. Can you?”

“I'll do what I can, ma'am, and thank you very much,” Dansk thanked them both, and then, turning to Christopher:

“I'll need the tests you've done on him so far. Has he been like this all day?”

Christopher explained to Dansk the strange transformation his nephew had undergone while showing him the tests he had done on Daniel. After an hour of further study and analysis, they came to a conclusion. Darius and Amira had not wanted to separate from their son and watched everything that those two characters did, while the boy continued in apparent suffering, still asleep.

“Without a doubt the genetic structure changed,” Dansk said, while observing and comparing two samples of Daniel's DNA through the microscope. “It appears to be a hybrid combination of his original genes and the genes of…whatever bit him.”

“You'll say a vampire,” Christopher corrected. Hearing this, Darius stood up in surprise and Amira put a hand to her mouth to stifle a cry of horror, beginning to cry.

“Is that possible?” Darius asked, standing next to his brother, while Dansk stopped looking into the microscope and faced them.

“It's possible and it just happened with your son,” Dansk said.

“I suspected it, but I wanted to be sure,” Christopher said. “Why is he still in that state then if he has already become a hybrid?”

Dansk sighed before answering his friend's question.

“It's because he needs to finish the transformation process.”

“And when will it end?” Darius asked worriedly.

Dansk looked at the brothers for a few seconds. Christopher thought he understood what the vampire meant.

“He needs blood,” Christopher said finally.

“But that's a need to…well, you know,” Darius said.

“His DNA was modified and he needs to finish assuming his new reality,” Dansk said. “In other circumstances, he would only need to bite the one who infected him to finish the process, but since that’s not possible, perhaps normal human blood will suffice.”

“I would recommend, knowing vampires as I do, that it be normal human blood,” Christopher suggested, “because if he bites whoever bit him, it could turn into a full-blown vampire. Don't you think so?”

“It's possible,” Dansk said. “Without the blood that infected him, he may stay as a hybrid...”

“What if he doesn't take blood?” Amira asked, hoping not to go that route.

“Then it may die slowly and painfully,” Dansk replied. “It may be the only time he need blood. Wolves eat raw meat with blood and it doesn’t create addiction or need for them.”

“Anyway, we have nothing to lose by trying.” Christopher shrugged.

“And if it becomes a necessity for him?” Darius still wasn't entirely convinced. “If he still needs blood like a vampire?”

“There’s only one way to answer those questions,” Dansk finished, implying that they only had to give Dan blood.

“Unless…” Christopher interrupted, going to a shelf and pulling out a scalpel. Then he faced them.

“What do you plan to do?” Darius asked, this time a little more scared.

“He needs blood to complete his transformation,” Christopher began to explain. “If we give him blood from whoever bit him, he could become a full-blown vampire, but if we give him our blood instead, maybe his wolf genes might take over and, well…”

“It’s also possible,” Dansk supported his reasoning, “but that he needs blood, he needs it.”

“Okay,” Christopher said, handing Darius the scalpel. “I think it must be you.”

“Don't be so dramatic,” said Dansk getting up and with a smile. He went to the same shelf where Christopher got the scalpel, and took out a new syringe, took it out of the package and gave it to his friend.

“Take a sample and then give it to the boy little by little with the syringe in his mouth,” Dansk said.

Christopher took the blood from Darius's arm, and then slowly began giving it to Daniel, who sipped it until the syringe was empty. They waited a few more minutes, which seemed like an eternity. In a moment Daniel stopped trembling and remained motionless, but a few seconds later he opened his eyes and uttered a new scream, beginning to transform back into the horrible creature from before. He jumped out of bed and everyone immediately moved away from him, except Dansk, who, watching him, began to approach him slowly. Daniel looked at him through red eyes and with heavy breathing, but instead of attacking him he stood in front of him; Dansk raised an arm and spoke to him in a language unknown to wolves. Daniel immediately lowered his head and moved away from him, sitting on the ground. A few seconds later he began to recover his original form; he lay down on the floor and began to tremble with cold, naked. Amira quickly grabbed a sheet from the bed and wrapped it around him, then hugged him.

“What did you tell him?” Darius asked Dansk as he walked over to his wife and the boy and knelt in front of them.

“What he should hear,” answered Dansk.

“So?” Christopher asked. “Is that all? What will happen now? Is he a vampire or a wolf?”

“That will be known in the next few hours,” Dansk said. “Although it seems he has already overcome his transformation into a hybrid, you have to be aware of what he may need.”

“More blood, for example?” Christopher asked. “Do you think he will need it?”

“I'm not sure of that, old friend. Maybe, maybe not. It will depend on him. How it evolves. The truth is that now he’s someone different, and apparently very powerful. More than you, more than us.”

“Now it's your turn to promise us that you won't say anything about him,” Darius asked Dansk. “Until now we have all been able to keep ourselves hidden from the sight of humans, but I wish that in addition to them, your people wouldn’t know either, especially Zander. Who knows what he would do if he found out about his existence.”

Dansk agreed.

“By the way, I would like to know how he is… you know…”

Dansk looked at Darius with just a hint of surprise on his face. He knew he was referring to the son given to Zander at birth twenty years ago.

“I've always been curious to know how he was, but I didn't dare to find out,” Darius continued, before Amira's sad look, who also wanted to know about her son.

“And you shouldn't find out,” Dansk cut in sharply, knowing that maybe it could provoke a violent reaction in him. “Remember that he ceased to be your son the moment you gave him to Zander.”

Darius looked down, resigned to not knowing about his son. Dansk was right; he shouldn't have asked him about him. What's more, he shouldn't even remember that he once had it.

Dansk felt his presence there was no longer necessary, at least for the time being, and got ready to leave, letting Christopher know, who said he would walk him to the door. Before leaving the compound, Dansk turned to Darius.

“He's fine,” he told him quietly. “He has grown healthy and strong.”

And he went out with Christopher after him.