Blood drained behind the vampire's jagged fangs. Surrounded by trees the size of skyscrapers, the lone figure stood, covered by shadows. The man-like creature walked slowly from his prey that laid behind him. Looking downward at his scarred chest, he growled in frustration. Knowing that the scars would never heal fully, the vampire took a last look back at the bear that he previously fought to the death for food. He continued to walk forward to the end of the forest when suddenly he heard a heart beating. Not the heart of an animal, but of something else. Standing still, he listened more carefully. No breathing.

"A vampire," he said to himself as he hid behind a tree trunk, "but why here? They didn't know I was here." His golden eyes darted to where the other vampire was walking.

"Female," he asked himself curiously, "I haven't seen her before." Taking another glance back, he concentrated his thoughts on the mind of the other vampire.

"She's trying to find me," he thought, "and she's been sent by a higher authority." Suddenly an intense pain took over his mind and he collapsed to the ground. Out of desperation, he read her mind again to try to see if she was the cause of the pain. What he read was not a regular thought, but a message.

"I can read minds too," the other vampire thought, "and by thinking messages, I can communicate through the mind. Now stay still as I walk toward you?"

"How are you paralyzing me?" He thought.

"My mind powers are far more powerful than yours…Edward."

"I can't read your thoughts," Edward responded, "I can only understand your messages."

"I can block people out of my mind if I'm aware they are trying to read it. You just got lucky when you found out I was hunting you down."

"How do you know all this? Are there other mind reading vampires?"

"You have no idea," the vampire said, this time aloud and not through thoughts. She was standing ten feet behind Edward, who had his back to the tree trunk.

"Why are you hunting me? Who sent you?"

"I'm sorry I can't answer thoughts, but I can tell you that you are going to die," the vampire said as she lunged toward Edward and threw him through the trunk. She looked like she was in her late teens, had a slender body, deep blood-colored eyes, and short black hair.

"You can't kill me Edward," she continued, "I can read your every move. And if you mange to pull one off without me knowing I can simply paralyze your mind. Just give up."

Edward darted the opposite way to get out of the forest. As he neared the opening to the end of the forest, the girl struck him again telepathically, and he fell to the ground in pain.

"I can't keep you down too long, so just stay still," the vampire explained as she pulled out a machete and a lighter, "Bye, Edward."

"Wait!" he replied in a shout, "Let me just ask you one thing," he said, not being able to move, "what is your name?" In following split second, the vampire released her telepathic hold on Edward to process the question in her mind. As fast as he could, in that small window of time, Edward grabbed the girl's machete and raised it above his head.

"No," she muttered as she realized she was powerless because of her subconscious fear of death at that very moment. With no hesitation, Edward threw his arm down and struck her in the neck with the machete. He wasn't strong enough to make a full clean cut, so her neck was only halfway sliced, with the machete stuck in her neck bone.

"Not too powerful when you're mind isn't clear? Knowing that I can kill you is keeping you from being able to hurt me with your mind isn't it…Michelle?" Michelle fell to the ground as blood sprayed from her neck.

"Yes that's right," Edward continued, standing in front of her injured body, "I can read your mind now. Too much pain? Not able to concentrate? Too bad Michelle. Tell me who sent you, and I won't kill you!" Michelle telepathically told him who sent her: Victoria.

"Thank you," Edward replied vocally, "but I have to admit I lied. I am going to have to kill you. You are too powerful to let live," Edward finished saying this by pulling the machete out of Michelle's neck and raising it above her for the final slice.

"Wait!" Michelle replied in her thoughts.

"What?"

"Behind you," she responded as a strong blow hit Edward from the back. He looked behind him to see middle aged male vampire, who too had blood red eyes. Edward sprinted back to Michelle, and as far away from the middle aged vampire as possible. He quickly finished chopping her head off, and realizing the rest of her body was too weak to fight back, threw it in a pile of dry brush. The other vampire saw Edward and jumped toward him. Quickly, Edward threw the lit lighter in the brush, causing Michelle's body to erupt into flame. Now with Michelle officially dead for good, it was Edward versus the middle aged vampire.

"So you must be Michelle's little helper?" Edward asked as they stood across from each other. The vampire ran toward him and Edward realized this enemy's strength wasn't in it's mind like Michelle, but in it's brute strength. Edward ran out of the forest, and into a wide open plain, that was soaked in sunlight. Edward stood, his skin looking like thousands of diamonds covering him.

"Come and get me," Edward said as he held a flaming tree branch in the air. As the vampire leaped into the plain, Edward threw the flaming branch at him, impaling the vampire in the chest. The fire quickly spread over it's whole body as Edward sprinted back into the forest. Grabbing the machete, he walked back to the vampire, who was now a screaming, flaming mass. Chop, chop, Chop! After cutting off all of it's burning limbs, and finally it's head, Edward threw the body pieces into the big fire that had already incinerated Michelle. He dropped the machete, and dusted himself off.

"What a day," Edward said to himself as he walked back into the plain and continued on his journey.