Chapter 2
The dark cobblestone alleyway dips in the middle to allow storm water and sewage to trickle to lower places. The rank smell of urine permeates the air, its acrid odor continuously replenished by the drunks stumbling to relieve themselves as they aimlessly meander through the night.
It is within these foul surroundings that the eternally damned seek their prey.
She stealthily maneuvers through the shadows until she is within striking distance. He is completely unaware. His inebriation has dulled his senses. Not that it would matter. Her presence would be undetectable to even the most perceptive of humans.
The putrid stench of the alley would normally be overwhelming to her heightened olfactory receptors, but the smell of blood makes all others pale in comparison. The blood calls her; it drives her.
He peers over his shoulder. He is too slow. She is already upon him. In one smooth swipe, she decapitates him with her long, razor-sharp fingernails. The arterial spray engulfs her. Though her victim outweighs her, she lifts the still twitching body directly over her upturned face as easily as someone would raise a double-handled pitcher and pour the contents to their mouth. The blood from the now headless neck flows directly into her gaping maw. The steady stream soon diminishes to a trickle, which in turn ends with a few lingering drips. There is no more. He is drained, empty. She is satiated...for now.
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