Slivers of moonlight filtered down from the skies above, piercing through the darkening clouds like silver arrows. From behind the shadowy billowing masses fell a steady yet sparse curtain of rain. The misty veil caught the light of the glowing orb hanging full in the night sky, casting a mysterious glow over the damp city below. Streetlights and the crimson trails of headlights illuminated the puddles on the dark gray floors while the smell of moisture hung heavy in the air. Even though the atmosphere was dreary and dull, there was still light—a dazzle of different colors, flowing and ebbing like individual spirits drifting through the rainy wind.
Something told her to avoid the luminescence. It was stronger than her urge to chase the beautiful hues through Darkwell's streets. Instead, the voice told her to hide—and so, she did. She snaked into the nooks and crannies, between and behind the small-town stores and houses. There, it was like another world; a labyrinth of soggy paths and foul-smelling corners. There, Darkwell's infamous stragglers made their homes. The homeless huddled underneath thin blankets as they struggled to sleep in the cold. The junkies smoked pot and munched on chips as they droned on about nonsense. Shady transactions occurred in the darkest of alleyways. The labyrinth was dangerous, and people like her weren't welcome there. There had been many stories of young girls and boys being lured there, only for them to emerge with their clothes ripped to shreds and their pockets empty of their personal belongings.
But the voice was persistent, and she hid behind a tin garbage can, away from the sight of the unfortunate as they groaned and rubbed their greasy faces. It was dark, but her eyes picked up everything that happened before her. The rats scuttling across the floors. The birds sleeping within their nests near the rooftops. Young boys laughing as they rolled their hash into damp pieces of paper, the small flames of their lighters eating away at the edges of the new cigarettes. A man eloped with his lover as he kept her pinned against the stone walls.
A deep, painful feeling rolled like thunder within her stomach. Hunger was a thing she, along with everyone else in the world, experienced often. She usually didn't eat much—an order of chicken nuggets and fries would sate her appetite on good days. But the hunger that was thrashing her stomach was unlike anything that she had ever felt before; the voice came back, its tone desperate and frantic as it made itself clear.
Seek, hunt, kill, eat, it shrieked at her, and her heartbeat quickened in response. Seek, hunt, kill, eat.
She did not think about what exactly she would be hunting, or killing, or eating. All that she knew was that she was hungry, and the painful, clawing feeling deep in her abdomen would not leave as long as she did not eat. Even as she waited, the sensation rose like bile in her throat, leaking into her mouth and causing her to salivate. It had not been long since she had a meal, but to her, it felt like an eternity since she laid eyes on a plate of food.
It was not long before a young man passed by the garbage can. Luckily, he did not see her taking shelter behind its pale mass. He staggered down the alley, his footsteps short and lanky. She noted that he was intoxicated and generally unaware of his surroundings. Her eyes focused on how slowly he moved; it was as if he was some sort of injured creature, crawling to safety. As she watched, the sharp feelings in her intestines and throat only increased. Seek, hunt, kill, eat, the voice cried out again, wailing like a starving child. Seek, hunt, kill, eat.
Her body moved before her mind did—her long legs glided effortlessly over the concrete, silent as she approached her prey. The male did not even turn around, even when she lurked in his very footsteps. Her heartbeat rang in her eardrums as she felt her lips curl backwards and saliva drip from her canines.
The hunger drove her to leap up, her arms wrapping around the torso of her prey. The male yelped in shock as long talons tore into his shirt, ripping the fabric as he fell to the ground. He had no chance to scream as her teeth sank into the back of his neck and dug in deep. Agonizing gasps escaped him as her grip on his throat only deepened, and the taste of blood flooded her mouth. It was not long before she found the vertebrae at the base of his cervix. Her strong jaw made short work of the thick bone, crunching down on it greedily as she drank his blood. Her tongue indulged in its flavor as she rendered tender flesh from the corpse. She wolfed down chunks of meat as she tore at the rest of the body, blood spilling onto the wet ground as she worked diligently in order to get the most she could into her stomach. Yet, the hunger kept clawing at her chest, begging for more of the blood and flesh of the young man.
More, the voice begged childishly, stubbornly. Even as she chewed on the tender muscles of her prey's thighs, it cried out. More!
