1257

My colleague Ernie and I have finally decided to go through with this experiment. We had to apply all the knowledge and skills of both of us, plus resources that are, to put it mildly, problematic to obtain in these parts. Well, we haven't lived here all this time for nothing. Our combat skills allow us to pull off even more than this; moreover, Ernie happened to have some components, I don't know from where... So, I provide the full schematic of the device for creating the cure, plus the approximate composition of the resulting liquid:

[Illegible, either due to time or originally.]

According to our hypothesis, this should be a universal cure that treats zoomorphism, allowing a human to return to their normal appearance. Incidentally, it should also save one from vampirism, although that is no longer as important. But for its creation, we require tissue samples from a zoomorph and a vampire; otherwise, we have no chance. We currently have a poor understanding of how they are structured, knowing only roughly how human bodies can be quickly modified. But that is not enough.

Well, finding a zoomorph was, to put it mildly, not difficult. Catching one is harder: the creature resisted like... Ah, I can't find the word. Zoomorphs are just zoomorphs. This one has almost no human appearance; it looks like an ordinary bear. Only upon close inspection are nearly human eyes and elongated fingers on the front paws visible. He could have lived a happy human life! Although... No, here he could not. But at least he could have had a mind. We took tissue samples and put the zoomorph in a cage. We will prepare the cure.

We underestimated the beast's strength: when Ernie was taking additional samples, it broke the cage, maimed my colleague, and ran away. Well, we will most likely still produce the synthesis of the cure. The device is gradually being built; there should be enough tissue samples. If, of course, we get similar ones from a vampire. But... Who are we to treat now? We need to catch the zoomorph again. Or take another one—after all, there are almost more of them here than normal people.

The search for zoomorphs and vampires is suspended. Very strong storms are beginning; we will have to lock ourselves tightly in the shelter. There is no question of any sorties. Extremely bad... Although I heard that there is a vampire among the survivors, so far we have failed to find any trace of him. Which is not very surprising; searching for such traces at night would be suicide, and by day the undead must hide somewhere. But there is a bright side: we now have plenty of time to create and finish the device itself.

It turned out that several parts are missing; without them, it is impossible to start the device. They must be findable on a machine from the Old World. But the storm is still raging; we cannot leave the shelter. The situation is complicated by the fact that we have run out of supplies; we didn't think we would end up locked in here for so long. I hope we get out soon.

A snake-zoomorph managed to penetrate inside. It is just as insane as the previous one, the bear, and we almost became victims of its hunting instinct. Fortunately, it was detected in time and weapons were used. We failed to capture it: it fled through a tunnel it had dug. We have fortified ourselves: no matter how much we need zoomorphs, it is still preferable that we drag them into the shelter ourselves, rather than them dragging us out of here.

The storm has finally stopped. We managed to replenish supplies. We'll leave the parts for tomorrow; supplies were more important and obtaining them took all our remaining strength.

Parts obtained. Continuing the construction of the device. In parallel, we are searching for a vampire.
Success! Found a zoomorph. This one is relatively intelligent; mutation type—jackal. It seems he is ready to cooperate with us. He has heard of the vampire and knows roughly where to start the search. Today's day undoubtedly pushed us very far forward.

We have found the vampire's trail. The zoomorph was clearly bled; judging by the handwriting, it wasn't another zoomorph. We will continue the search.

Apparently, the vampire moved to another shelter. Unable to find him. Continuing the search.

The vampire has been found and captured. Unfortunately, we underestimated him, and during the capture, our zoomorph companion was seriously injured. I fear his days are numbered and we will not be able to test the drug on him as we wanted. And as he wanted.
Ernie and I successfully took samples of the vampire's living tissues, if they can be called living. We placed them in the refrigerator. Just in case, we took fresh tissue samples from the zoomorph; he didn't mind giving a small amount of blood, skin, and fur. It might be needed. We must speed up the development of the device so that we have a chance to test the cure on him.

The zoomorph has passed away. His name was Bill and he was a good guy, even if he was jackal-like. However, jokes are inappropriate here. We lost a good comrade and an assistant in the experiments simultaneously; both are very difficult to find here.

Successfully assembled the device. The power supply unit lacks capacity; it cannot be started. In this hole, there is an eternal problem with energy...
Managed to solve the power problem. The device is running and, based on tissue samples, produced a liquid for us. We haven't caught any new zoomorphs and haven't encountered them at all; testing the cure on a vampire is risky and... Not part of our goal. Zoomorphs are more interesting to us; the vampire was a necessary measure—without his tissues, nothing would have worked. Ernie wants to test the cure himself and finally rid himself of the deformity. I would very much not want it if something goes wrong that I'll be left alone, as it will be difficult for me not just to conduct experiments, but even to survive at all. We will try to catch a zoomorph.

No results in the search for zoomorphs. It feels as if they have all gone extinct. Ernie insists on conducting the test on himself, and I decided to give in to his persuasion. Using an internal injector, we introduced the liquid. After a few hours, the rat tail noticeably decreased in size, which is currently a good sign.

Ernie's rat tail has disappeared completely, which makes him unspeakably happy, and I cannot help but share his joy. Tests seem to be normal. The cure for zoomorphism occurred. But he must be observed carefully; side effects may appear at any moment, whether right now or in a few years. It is impossible to predict.

Ernie's body has shown a strange tendency toward wasting. Apparently, the cure disrupted his metabolism, which cannot help but be disheartening. Moreover, Ernie has completely lost his appetite. It is unclear exactly what is happening to him: a hormonal imbalance or some kind of infection that was contained in the experimental tissues and has now settled in his body. In any case, my colleague requires bed rest. I will make every effort to help him recover as soon as possible.
My previous conclusions were wrong; in reality, everything is much simpler and worse. Ernie is becoming a vampire. Apparently, something is wrong with our theory. Oh, how regrettable that we had to test it on Ernie!
My colleague is losing his mind; at least his gaze has changed, becoming empty and detached. His attitude toward me is also changing. He does not show aggression, rather indifference. He finds me burdensome.
Today I tried to inject the cure into his body. He did not resist. After a few minutes, the metabolism normalized, and the skin acquired a natural hue. Ernie came to himself and began to question me in detail about the changes in his body. I answered him honestly, but it seemed to me that he didn't quite believe it. Apparently, he perceives what is happening differently, not as his transformation into a monster.
After three hours, the effect of the drug wore off and Ernie became lifeless again. For now, I am afraid to give another dose; this could be extremely harmful to his body. If, of course, more harm can even be done to his body than we have already caused.
Considerable time has passed since the last administration of the cure and I decided to inject it once more. The effect is the same. Perhaps I will manage to do something to improve the formula, only now Ernie is no longer an assistant...
All my attempts are futile. Worse still, while giving Ernie the cure last time, I discovered that it worked only partially: the body came alive and stopped exhibiting vampire nature, but the mind is not awakened. I don't know what to do. I am starting to worry not only for Ernie, but also for my own life. I have two vampires in my shelter; there is reason to be cautious. Next time after injecting the cure, I must deprive Ernie of mobility. Until I figure out how to cure him, it is better for him to remain strapped to a chair.
Too late. Something happened during the night and Ernie no longer lets me near him. Furthermore, he killed our vampire with considerable cruelty. Now I need to approach the problem from another angle. I'll try to lure him into a cage and lock him up. Only he is unlikely to fall for it; he has lost human reason, but not reason in general. Moreover, our vampire is dead, which means I will get no new tissue samples. Unless I try to use Ernie himself for this, but it might not work.
Ernie-Ernie... How did it happen that you became a monster? Forgive me, if you can...

[Further pages are torn out; after them is already a different handwriting]

Reading this, I just wanted to tear this talentless little diary into tiny pieces. The world certainly didn't lose a great writer in him. I think I'll leave this "creation" here. I have eaten well for the road and feel enough strength to try and get out of this hole. Farewell, Southern Reach! I will forget you with great pleasure.

Ernst Zuter is a vampire. And yet, looking at him, it's hard to say that this is so; he differs little from an ordinary person who simply... Leads an unhealthy lifestyle. Although a specialist in this field will figure out what's what.
In the past, Ernst Zuter was a scientist, which is reflected in his current character but does not override his new essence. Also, Ernst is a devotee of Nox. Previously, of course, he was not, but Nox quickly found himself a new servant when Ernst became a vampire.

Characteristics:
- Strength 8 +2 (military training)
- Agility 11
- Speed 8
- Intelligence 6 +3 (engineer)
- Willpower 10
- Perception 5
Perks:
- Vampire
- Survivor
- Intuition
OU: 6 + 2 (Nox, going for killer) + 6 (survivor) + 2x2 (willpower+vampire)
Skills:
Killer: gift of Nox
Engineer: what remains of the old Ernst
Drone control
Dark Magic III
— Veil
— Subjugation
— Wave of Fear
Melee Combat
— Character performs two attacks instead of one
— Once per battle allows avoiding an attack that would lead to death
— Evasion +40
Military Training
— +2 strength, +50 health

Inventory:
- Armor (not heavy): together with leather and synthetic clothing covers the whole body except the face. Vampires are not afraid to sweat.
- Black synthetic scarf: does not let light through.
- Injector: allows injecting a special mutagenic liquid into the body, temporarily (for a couple or three hours) ridding Zuter of vampirism, but also depriving him of all vampire bonuses. Can be used only once per day; in any case, the consequences of more frequent use are unknown and could be extremely negative.
- Ampoules x6: contain that very liquid. Unfortunately, the shelter's supplies in the Southern Reach did not allow them to be made in large quantities, but this should be enough for some time.
- Modern one-handed blade: used in the Southern Reach to defend the shelter and for sorties outside. Surprisingly strong and high-quality material.
- Folding knife: a weapon hidden in the armor which, due to its impressive size, is hard to call a knife. A spring mechanism releases it easily, quickly, and silently, so stabbing an opponent with it is not difficult at all.
- Assault rifle: also was an excellent weapon in the Southern Reach, but in current realities its expediency is doubtful. Now Zuter prefers other weapons, more silent ones. Moreover, after what happened to his body and mind, Ernst lost his skills in handling it.
- Flask filled with blood: some unlucky zoomorph shared it willingly.
- Tools for working with iron and various chemicals. Only the most necessary; everything is very compactly distributed across the former scientist's clothing. Ammeter, chemical analyzer, all along those lines.
- Means of transportation: traveling the world on foot would be extremely difficult, so this workhorse came in handy.
- (if needed) Device for controlling drones.