[INT. HOTEL BALLROOM – NIGHT] Lucas, seated near the edge of the crowd, watches as Martin walks onto the stage. James stands at a corner, distant and cold. Waiters carry trays of food, and a beautiful cake rests in the center. A banner hangs: "HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MARTIN."
MARTIN (smiling to the crowd) Everyone… thank you for coming. Today is my birthday, yes. But it's also a moment to launch something new. A blood donation project. For those in need… so they don't suffer like others do.
(The crowd claps. Martin's eyes subtly shift toward Lucas, whose face tightens.)
LUCAS (thinking) Why is James so distant… why is he on the other side?
STEPHEN (entering) Sorry if I interrupted something.
MARTIN (warmly) Not at all. Please, join us. Come.
STEPHEN (sits beside Lucas) This party feels strange. You ever notice how Martin… changes when he speaks about history?
MARTIN (speaking on stage) Dracula. The legend. People call him evil… but was he truly? Or was he just a warrior for his family? A man of honor who spilled blood for what he believed in?
(Martin locks eyes with Lucas, then places a hand on his shoulder. Lucas snaps from his thoughts and awkwardly smiles.)
MARTIN (concluding) Let us eat. Celebrate. Today is a gift.
[INT. MARTIN'S HOUSE – LATE NIGHT] Martin, asleep. A crash. The window shatters. JACK THE RIPPER enters.
JACK Monster. I know who you are. You hide behind books and birthday cakes. But I've seen it. Your eyes. You're a threat to this city.
MARTIN (sitting up, calm) Disappointed, Jack. Still trying to save humans. Still clinging to old myths. I expected more.
(They stare. The camera cuts away.)
[EXT. PRISON GATES – SAME NIGHT] Dr. Fredrick walks out. George follows. Daniel smiles in the shadows.
DANIEL Go. Finish what we started.
[INT. ABANDONED WAREHOUSE – TRAINING ROOM – NIGHT] James, now hardened, kills mafia leader Furni with a precise shot.
JAMES You think monsters are born? No. We're made. And I'm making myself the monster that'll kill Martin.
[INT. POLICE STATION – DAY] Lucas sits at a desk. He flips through crime scene reports.
LUCAS Jack's dead. And now… Jeremy too? That was my friend. Why is it… every time Martin disappears, someone close to us dies?
STEPHEN Are you saying he's the vampire?
LUCAS It's more than a hunch now.
[AUSTIN – CALLING FROM AN UNKNOWN LOCATION] Austin's voice, distant, tired.
AUSTIN Hello, Lucas. I've been watching. The deaths, the patterns. It's Martin. He's been behind this from the beginning. He's making monsters, not stopping them. And you… you've lost your role because you were getting too close.
STEPHEN Then we go to him. Now.
[EXT. MARTIN'S HOUSE – NIGHT] Stephen knocks. No answer. He forces the door open.
MARTIN (inside, waiting) I see. You've come.
STEPHEN hey
MARTIN (smirks) welcome