The moon hung law, an eerie crimson glow seeping through the dense mist that covered the sacred grounds of the lunaris sect. A hush fell over the grand temple as the high priest stepped forward, his voice a whisper that carried through the dimly lit chamber.

"The blood moon has chosen"

Jeon Jungkook stood motionless, his breath steady despite the weight of destiny pressing against his chest. He had spent years training for this moment--honing his skill, sharpening his instincts, preparing to fulfill the sacred duty passed down through generations of hunters.

He is the chosen one.

The assembled priests watched with cold, calculating eyes. Their white robes, embroidered with silver constellations, shimmered in the flickering candlelight. Jungkook met the gaze of hid childhood friend, Park Jimin, who stood among them. There was no warmth in Jimin's expression, only quiet resignation.

"Your task is simple," the high priest continued. "Find the vampire prince. Kill him before the blood moon reached its peak. Only then will the pact be fulfilled."

A heavy silence settled over the room. Jungkook clenched his fists, feeling the worn leather of his gloves bite into his palms. He had never questioned his duty before. But something in the pit of his stomach twisted at the command.

The vampire prince. The cursed one. The one who had evaded death for centuries, only to be hunted again and again by those chosen before Jungkook.

Kim Taehyung.

Jungkook had heard the stories. A creature of unnatural beauty, with eyes as dark as midnight and a voice that could ensnare even the strongest-willed hunter. A being who had lived a hundred lifetimes and cheated fate itself.

And now, he was Jungkook's prey.

The hunt began at dawn.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Nightfall found Jungkook deep within the ruins of noctis vale, the once-great city now abandoned and reclaimed by shadows. The air was thick with the scent of rain and decay, the remnants of a past long forgotten. His footsteps were silent as he moved through the crumbling streets, his senses sharp, his blade ready.

He wasn't alone.

A whisper of movement. A flicker of silver in the dark.

Jungkook spun, blade raised, but before he could strike, a voice--low and velvety--cut through the silence.

"You're faster than the others."

His breath hitched.

A figure stepped from the shadows, draped in a cloak of deep crimson. The moonlight caught his features, illuminating sharp cheekbones, full lips curved in a knowing smile, and those haunting, inhuman eyes-pools of endless darkness, filled with secrets untold.

Kim Taehyung.

Jungkook tightened his grip on his sword. "You knew I was coming."

Taehyung titled his head, amusement flickering across his face. "Of course. The blood moon always sends someone." His gaze roamed over Jungkook, slow and deliberate. "But you.... you are different."

Jungkook's pulse quickened. He couldn't afford to be distracted.

"You're a monster," he said coldly. "And I am here to end you."

Taehyung's smile widened. "Then go on, hunter. Try."

The fight was instantaneous--a blur of steel and shadow. Jungkook's blade met Taehyung's claws, sparks flying as they clashed. The force of the impact sent Jungkook skidding back, but he recovered swiftly, launching another strike. Taehyung dodged effortlessly, moving like liquid night, his laughter echoing through the ruins.

"You hesitate," Taehyung mused, dodging another swing. "Is it fear? Or something else?"

Jungkook grit his teeth, pushing forward, but Taehyung was faster. Before he could react, cold fingers brushed his throat--light as a whisper, but firm enough to remind him of the power that lurked beneath Taehyung's deceptive grace.

"You're not like the others," Taehyung murmured, gaze locked onto Jungkook's.

"Why does your soul feel.... familiar?"

A memory flashed through Jungkook's mind-fragmented, fleeting, like a dream slipping through his grasp. A voice calling his name in a language long forgotten. A touch that felt like home.

His breath hitched. And in that split second of hesitation, Taehyung vanished into the night.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

Jungkook stood frozen, heart hammering. The hunt had only just begun.

He exhaled slowly, steadying his racing thoughts. Noctis vale was vast, a labyrinth of ruins and forgotten catacombs.

If he was to catch Taehyung, he needed to understand his prey--where he would hide, where he would strike.

Determined, Jungkook pressed forward, his senses tuned to the faintest sound. Every rustle of the wind, every shifting shadow, made his skin crawl. He had hunted vampires before, but Taehyung was something else entirely.

Hours passed as he searched the depths of Noctis vale, weaving through abandoned corridors and decayed palaces. Then-

A whisper.

He turned sharply, blade drawn, and found himself standing before an ancient cathedral. The massive doors, once adorned with celestial carvings, were cracked and weathered with time. Inside, candlelight flickered faintly, illuminating a lone figure seated upon the altar steps.

Taehyung.

His crimson cloak pooled around him, his posture relaxed, as if he had been expecting Jungkook all along. He looked up, his dark eyes shimmering with something unreadable.

"You hunt so tirelessly," he murmured. "And yet, do you know why?"

Jungkook stepped closer, blade steady. "You're the cursed prince. I don't need to know more."

Taehyung chuckled softly. "Ah, but you do. Otherwise, why do you hesitate?"

Jungkook tightened his grip. "I don't hesitate?"

"Then kill me."

The words were spoken so calmly that Jungkook faltered. Taehyung's gaze didn't waver, his lips curving into a ghost of a smile. He leaned forward, exposing the delicate curve of his throat. "Go on. End it."

Jungkook's hand trembled. Something in Taehyung's expression-something ancient, knowing-sent a shiver through him.

"You can't, can you?" Taehyung whispered. "Because you remember."

The flash of a past life surged through Jungkook's mind. Another time, another place-his hands entwined with Taehyung's, laughter echoing under a blood-red sky. A promise. A betrayal. A love lost to the cycle of the blood moon.

Jungkook staggered back, breath unsteady.

Taehyung rose slowly, his presence overwhelming. "You and I are bound, hunter. Across lifetime, across fate itself."

The candle flickered. The air thickened. Jungkook felt the weight of a truth he wasn't ready to face.

And as Taehyung reached for him, whispering his name in a voice that sent fire through his veins, he realized-

This hunt would not end in blood.

It would end in something far more dangerous.

The wind howled through the crumbling cathedral, rattling the stained-glass windows and casting fractured colors over the worn stone floor. Jungkook’s heartbeat pounded in his ears, his blade still poised between himself and Taehyung. But his fingers trembled.

“You’re lying.”

Taehyung's lips curled into an amused smirk, hid dark eyes glinting in the candlelight. "Am I?"

Jungkook wanted to deny it, to push forward and finish his mission, but something inside him twisted-something old, buried deep beneath the layers of duty and training. When Taehyung had whispered his name, it had felt like a song he had once known, a memory he couldn't quite grasp.

"The Blood moon does not choose at random," Taehyung continued, stepping closer. " It blinds those who are meant to find each other, again and again."

Jungkook took a shaky breath, his grip tightening on the hilt of his blade. "I am not bound to you."

Taehyung chucked, the sound rich and hunting. "If that were true, hunter, then why didn't you strike when you had the chance?"

The silence stretched between them, thick and suffocating. Jungkook had no answer. He had trained his whole life to kill creatures like Taehyung, yet in that moment-faced with the vampire prince's knowing gaze-his resolve faltered.

"I have spent centuries watching the hunters come for me," Taehyung mused, his voice softer now. "They always come. They always die." He tilted his head, studying Jungkook as through he were a puzzle to be solved. "But you... you are different."

Jungkook exhaled sharply, shaking off the strange pull of Taehyung's words. "It doesn't matter. I will complete my mission."

Taehyung's smirk remained, but something flickered in his eyes-something almost... disappointed. "Then I suppose we shall see."

In an instant, the vampire prince disappeared, his form dissolving into shadows. The candles flickered violently before plunging the cathedral into darkness.

Jungkook stood alone, blade still raised, his pulse unsteady.

__________________________________________________________________________________________

The next morning, Jungkook sat at the edge of a decayed fountain in the heart of Noctis Vale, staring into the water's murky depths. His reflection rippled, his own eyes foreign to him.

He was losing focus. He couldn't afford that.

"You look troubled."

Jungkook didn't flinch as Park Jimin approached, his boots crunching over loose gravel. The priest's was unreadable as he took a seat beside Jungkook.

"Did you find him?" Jimin asked.

Jungkook hesitated. "Yes."

"And?"

Jungkook clenched his jaw. "He got away."

Jimin sighed, rubbing his temples. "You're the Chosen One, Jungkook. The Blood Moon doesn't make mistakes. If you hesitate, you risk everything."

"I didn't hesitate."

Jimin raised an eyebrow. "Then why is he still alive?"

Jungkook had no response. He looked away, frustration curling in his chest. The truth was, he didn't know why he had let Taehyung escape. He should have struck without mercy. He should have ended it.

Instead, he had listened to the whispers of the past, to the ghost of a memory he wasn't even sure was real.

Jimin studied him for a long moment. "This isn't the first time, is it?"

Jungkook tensed. "What?"

Jimin leaned in slightly, his voice quiet. "You've dreamt of him before, haven't you?"

Jungkook's blood ran cold. "That's ridiculous."

Jimin shook his head. "I don't think it is." He paused, glancing toward the surrounding ruins. "The Blood Moon binds fates. Sometimes in ways we don't understand. You need to decide what you believe before it's too late."

Jungkook wanted to argue, but the weight of Jimin's words settled over him like a heavy shroud.

What did he believe?

__________________________________________________________________________________________

That night, the dreams came again.

Jungkook stood in a grand hall bathed in silver light. The air was thick with the scent of roses and something darker-iron, blood. He turned, searching for something, someone.

Then, he saw him.

Taehyung stood at the far end of the hall, dressed in regal black, his crimson cloak draped over his shoulders. His expression was unreadable, but his eyes burned with something Jungkook couldn't name.

"You found me again," Taehyung whispered.

Jungkook stepped forward, his chest tightening. "What is that?"

Taehyung smiled-a sad, knowing smile. "A memory."

The world shifted, the grand hall crumbling into darkness. A battlefield stretched before them now, littered with bodies and soaked in crimson. Jungkook's hands were stained with blood-not his, not entirely.

Taehyung knelt before him, his body broken, yet his eyes remained the same. "You killed me once."

Jungkook's breath hitched. "No.... I-"

Taehyung reached out, his fingers brushing against Jungkook's cheek. "And still, you found me again."

Pain lanced through Jungkook's chest. The weight of something old, something powerful, pressed against him. He staggered back, the dream dissolving into shadows.

His eyes snapped open, his breath ragged.

The Blood Moon hung heavy in the sky, its glow painting the ruins in crimson.

And deep in his soul, Jungkook knew.

This was not the first time.

Nor would it be the last.