"Goddamn devil spawn! Why do you always have wings?"
Victoria Nelson's feet pounded the pavement as she tried to keep the creature ahead of her in sight. With 20 feet on her forward and 10 feet above ground, Vicki was having trouble catching up to the infernal beast, as well as discerning it amongst the smokey shadows of Toronto's side streets. Wrenching another breath through her lungs, she skidded around a corner. She was now following the demon only by its hideous shrieks. She vaulted over an empty packing crate, stumbling as she hit the ground but just managing to stay upright. Thank heaven for small mercies, her mother's voice slipped through her mind as she built up speed again, searching through patches of darkness for her quarry.
Vicki moved steadily forward, weaving around trash cans and the usual junk left in back alleys, bumping into most things but managing to avoid taking a serious spill. Gradually, the inhuman screeches died down to the occasional echoing growl ahead of her and eventually, there was only silence. Vicki slowed, treading carefully as she scanned the darkness that was all but impenetrable to her. Even in the light, skittering black clouds pulsed at the edge of her sight. Her night blindness was worse than it had ever been but here she was, creeping through back alleys, following another supernatural freak into God knows what sort of dangerous situation.
"Here, demon... Where the hell have you gone? Wait - don't answer that."
Vicki moved forward, squinting at every shadow and running a thumb under the strap of the salt gun slung over her shoulder. She edged into the light of an intersecting side street, the streetlamps bathing her in a faint orange glow. She stayed still, watching the shadows. The creature she was trying to track only went silent when it was stalking its prey. She'd been too far behind for it to be interested in her so it must have found something else worth terrorising. She was just considering moving along down the alley back into darkness when she heard a shout from the main road followed by several gunshots and a screech.
Vicki sprinted towards the lights of the road, unshouldering her gun as she ran. She stopped suddenly at the mouth of the side street, looking for the source of the noise. Just off to her left, she spotted two people in heavy trench coats, both with handguns drawn, ducking as the demon swooped down over their car. The smaller of the pair, a woman whose hair shone like fire under the streetlamp, raised her weapon and fired at the creature again. It took little notice as the bullets sunk deep into its translucent skin, hovering above them for a moment before dive-bombing the couple again. Vicki knew from experience that it made only a few passes before attacking its prey in earnest.
She lifted the rifle to her shoulder and focused on the beast as it reached the zenith of its second dive. Just as it readied itself for a final drop, she squeezed off a couple of rounds into its midsection and right wing. It screamed in anger, writhing in mid air and dropping a few feet as it did so. Vicki lowered her weapon a few inches, gauging the effectiveness of her shots. The beast howled in defeat, flying up above the rooftops, and headed north-east, back to its current lair. Vicki smiled grimly and glanced at the pair with their guns still drawn, looking at her in shock. She didn't need any extra trouble tonight, her job was done. She turned and melted into the darkness, moving swiftly into the alley she came from, back to her apartment. She ignored the male voice shouting for her to wait and picked up her pace.
She could do with some sleep.