Chapter 4

It's Alive!

Sombra was getting quite bored at this Halloween party. When there was no work to be done, no target to follow and no stupid teenager to prevent from being eaten, parties were quite dull. She would have left a while ago if not for Hana. The freshman had become a friend since they'd saved Lena from the Spider Woman, and she'd even help her a few times, most recently to capture a bunch of gnomes who'd infiltrated a coffee shop near the campus. Nothing too glorious, but she wouldn't take an inexperienced girl to hunt vampires just yet.

They'd been standing in a corner with an empty red solo cup for a good half an hour now, Hana, as usual, talking about video games while Sombra only half-listened, her eyes navigating around the room for anything suspicious. Fareeha and Angela were there too, also standing not far from them. Lena had refused to come, as she was still very much afraid of being attacked by another Spider, so Sombra had left her dad with her, just because she knew he would wreak havoc at a student party.

Since the party was suppose to be for Halloween, everyone had come dressed up. Hana had recreated an outfit from the 50's, with a flannel, red high heels and large golden earrings. She'd had to readjust the scarf in her hair at least a dozen times since the beginning of the night because it kept falling off. Angela had recycled an old witch costume she'd been working on every Halloween since her freshman year, adding details and fixing things every time. This year she'd actually found pumpkin earrings, and she'd changed the pin holding her little white cape together. Fareeha hadn't so much as dressed up differently, but had rather asked Angela's help with makeup. They'd turn her skin gray, covering it with light purple veins and she'd put on contact which made her eyes look white, almost yellowish. Sombra, who wouldn't actually have come dressed up if Hana hadn't insisted, was wearing her hunting gear, minus some of her most impressive weapon. When some of the guys had asked if those were real knives around her belt, she'd pretended they weren't, and they were all too drunk to notice the difference.

Hana had been talking about some online game she'd recently discovered for a while now when Sombra had finally had enough. It was almost midnight, she'd been standing in someone's dining room for more than two hours, holding an empty cup she didn't drink from, her ears buzzing with loud music and equally loud conversation. She would go home, maybe find herself a small hunt for the night since she was already in gear, or maybe sleep a little, for once.

She turned to Hana, who was still talking about her game.

"- And the character roster is impressive. There's not a lot of them yet, but the developers promised they would release more as time goes on, so I'm quite excited."

"Listen, Hana, I think I'm going to go. I'm bored to death."

The younger girl looked at her somewhat saddened.

"Already? But I heard there's going to be a big surprise at midnight."

Sombra sighed. Hana had the tendency of using a technique Sombra had dubbed the 'puppy eyes', and she was becoming increasingly afraid of how well it worked on her.

"Bueno! I'll wait till midnight. But if your surprise is a goddamn firework or something I'm so out."

Hana smiled and quickly snatched Sombra's cup out of her hand.

"I'll go fill it up!"

"But I don't want another drink!" Sombra shouted as the girl ran out of her sight.

She sighed, and after another glance around the room decided to go talk to her friends. They'd been talking all night in their little corner, and Sombra had noticed almost funnily how Fareeha did everything to brush off all the guys hitting on Angela.

"Hey, what's up. I'm thinking off leaving."

Angela nodded.

"Yes, me too. I don't usually stay that long at parties."

Fareeha shrugged.

"Sure, let's go home."

Sombra crossed her arms.

"Let's just wait till midnight? Hana said there's going to be a surprise."

Angela and Fareeha exchanged a glance, but they both nodded.

"Sure, why not?"

Hana returned as quickly as she could to her friend and found her listening to Fareeha.

"Hey, guys! Here, your cup."

Sombra took it but didn't drink from it. Hana joined their little circle and asked:

"So, what were you talking about?"

Fareeha replied:

"I was telling them about a story my father would tell me every year for Halloween. It's the story of a crazy inventor who used magic to bring a monster to life, and the monster attacked a village. Apparently, it's a German legend."

Hana nodded, and Fareeha finished her tale:

"The carnage lasted for hours before the monster disappeared. No one knows exactly what became of it or where it went. And then my dad would swear he'd seen the village who'd been abandoned since, but I stopped believing it was true quite a while ago."

"Oh, you mean how you didn't believe the curse was active on you."

Fareeha glared at Sombra for her comment. Her mark was barely discernible under all the makeup, but Sombra could still make it out, and she was quite proud of her work.

As midnight ticked closer and closer, a few people began to walk around screaming:

"It's almost time for the surprise!"

Sombra sighed.

"I swear if it's a clown he's not walking unarmed from here." Sombra declared as more and more people moved to the garden.

After a while the little group decided to move outside as well, staying close to the door so they could leave at the first sight of fireworks, just like Sombra had promised. A minute before midnight, most of the people at the party were outside, the music had been cut and the lights on the patio had been turned off. Everyone was waiting, for Sombra could only assume was a firework show.

The buzzing sound of people talking was beginning to annoy her, and she was about to turn around when she suddenly felt something stir deep within her. Her heart sent adrenaline in her entire body, and by reflex, her hand reached for one of the throwing knives at her belt. The other three seemed to notice it.

"Sombra?" Hana inquired.

Sombra's eyes were scanning the crowd and the darkest spots of the garden. Without turning her head to address them, she asked:

"Fareeha, do you hear anything coming?"

Fareeha tried to focus on her ears like she'd been doing in the past few days to train her new senses. Angela looked at her with concern. She did hear something unusual. It was heavy, walking slowly toward the house. She heard metal clicking with every one of its steps, like the chains which had been holding her during the previous full moon. And a raspy breath, as if it had difficulty breathing.

"There's something coming."

"That's what I thought."

"I'll warn everyone!" Angela declared.

But before she could even take a step toward the rest of the crowd, Sombra strongly took a hold of her arm.

"Don't. They won't believe you and you'll only put yourself in danger. Take Hana and go to my car. I've left my best weapon there. Bring it back as soon as you can."

Angela exchanged a glance with Hana, and they both nodded before running out of the house. Sombra's gaze was still fixed on the wooden fence on the other side of the garden.

"And me, what do I do?" Fareeha asked.

Sombra smirked.

"Time to know if this mark really work."

"Are you serious? What if I lose control again?!"

"Let's just hope you don't, alright?"

Fareeha nodded, although still unsure about Sombra's plan.

The rest of the people there had yet to realize anything was happening. Sombra knew the instant the monster would break through the fence it would be a great panic, and they would all flee to the doors. She turned around and indicated at Fareeha that they should move somewhere more to the side. They sidled along the wall to the corner of the garden, against the garden. Finally, the monster was so close even Sombra could feel its presence, and hear the sound of its heavy steps.

"I'll attack it as soon as it appears. I'm giving you a good five minutes to transform, so you better not fail me, got it."

Fareeha nodded. Since the incident during the full moon, she hadn't turned at all. She wasn't even sure how to do it.

"And if I can't transform in under five minutes?"

"Then pray this thing isn't too big for me to handle."

It first started with a cracking sound, so loud it made everyone in the garden stop their conversation. They had all believed the firework show was about to begin, and the first rocket had been sent. There was another crack, and a third, and suddenly everyone knew something off was going on. Then suddenly, the wooden fence fell to the ground, revealing a monstrous figure on the other side. It was taller than everyone and far larger. It was a massive human, holding a metal hook in one hand. On its back, two Tesla coils crackled with electricity, illuminating the beast from behind, as if thunder was hitting right behind it. Already the hundred or so students in the garden were running back inside, as the monster let out a disgusting growl, spit falling out of its mouth.

Sombra didn't wait. She threw a knife at the thing's head, only to find her weapon rebounding on its skull. She cursed. Probably metal plated. Her attention then shifted to its large belly, which had been poorly stitched together, and still had holes in it. She assumed this would be the monster's weakness. She threw another knife at it, this time straight to the belly, and the blade dug right through it. The monster howled in pain. Its attention shifted from the mass of student screaming to Sombra. She took her dagger out of her jacket and glanced quickly at Fareeha who seemed to have either completely forgotten what she was supposed to do, or still hadn't figured out how to do it.

Sombra charged toward the monster, and it threw its hook in her direction. She barely avoided it by rolling to the side, the hoot grazing her arm and racking against her protective plating. Sombra had never been more pleased to be wearing her gear.

She threw another knife to its belly, distracting it just enough to run and slide between its massive legs. She nimbly jumped on its back, her hands founding purchase on the large batteries attached there. The electricity still crackled between the two Telsa coil, sending waves of heat on Sombra's face.

She'd expected the beast to buckle and wiggle like a worm, trying to get rid of the parasite on its back. Instead, a large hand caught Sombra's head. The huntress was surprised, and when the hand yanked her over the monster's shoulder, there was nothing she could do but let go of the batteries.

Her back hit the lawn with force, knocking the air out of her lungs. She quickly gasped, filling her lungs again, just in time to see an enormous foot quickly coming to crush her. She crossed her arm with her dagger, and the foot came pushing down on her. She replied with all her strength, pushing back as much as possible. She knew the monster was strong and heavy enough to break every single one of ribs, and crush her lungs in the process.

"Fareeha!" she called, not sure how long she would hold.

She glanced over at her friend, who was still struggling to turn. She clenched her teeth under the pressure. Her shoulders already hurt. Her only hope now was for Hana to come back with her best weapon.

Suddenly she saw someone run and jump at the monster. Sombra saw enough to know that it was Fareeha, who had decided to attack in human form, probably to distract the beast. It worked. When the monster saw her coming at full speed toward him, he released enough pressure on Sombra for her to push his leg away and roll off. The beast tottered for a second, forcing its foot back on the ground and crushing the lawn under him. The next second, as Fareeha fearlessly jumped at him, probably trying to push it, it caught her in one of its massive hand, and threw her toward the house. Sombra barely had the time to follow her trajectory, and watch her crash against the house wall, almost passing through it, before the beast was onto her again.

She tried to jump back up, but it caught her by the neck, and raised her, effectively strangling her. Sombra groaned as she felt her windpipes being crushed. This monster was way faster than she had expected. She knew at this rate she barely had a minute left, and really hoped Hana was close.

Suddenly she was thrown on the lawn, but not by the monster. It had simply let her go, and she'd fallen down. While she was confused at first, the sound of growling was enough to tell her what was happening, and she smirked. Fareeha had finally figured it out.

Sombra quickly stepped back, massaging her neck. There was nothing she could do until Hana was back, really, so she decided to watch. The monster was now in a strength duel against an enormous jackal-like beast. It was just a bit shorter than the monster, with a jet black fur. It was mostly standing on its powerful rear legs, its massive claws embedded in the monster's arms. The most impressive part of its body was definitely its shoulders, large and muscular, far more similar to that of a human, rather than a canine.

Fareeha tried to push the monster back out the fence, where it had come from, but the creature was not only heavy, but also equally powerful, and as they pushed each other neither of them really moved.

They'd been stuck in this force battle for a good two minutes by the time Angela and Hana came back. They were first shocked to find the werewolf fighting the creature, especially Angela.

"Hana, my gun?"

Their attention shifted to Sombra, sitting by the bottom of the stairs, visibly looking tired.

Hana instantly threw her her weapon, which she'd been preciously holding onto. Sombra caught it with one hand and got up. Her weapon looked just like a normal semi-automatic gun, one which she could easily use with one hand. It was, in reality, a high-pressured silver bullet gun. Sombra armed her gun, and decided to return to the fight.

Just then, the monster finally managed to throw Fareeha off him, sending her flying against another part of the house. This time she passed through completely, in a hellish ruckus. Angela rushed inside and toward where Fareeha had probably landed. Sombra took in a deep breath.

"Time for this beast to take a little nap."

She fired directly at it, still aiming for its belly. The bullets didn't pass through his skin, though, and it only seemed to aggravate the beast even more. Sombra cursed under her breath. She'd have to get close once again. She ran up to him, and once again it threw its hook at her. She avoided it, or so she thought, and tried to fire at the monster until she felt something cold circling her midsection. She was pulled toward the monster, who caught her by the neck and proceeded to strangle her once again. Sombra thought this whole mess was becoming quite annoying, and decided a good bullet in the head would calm it down. Only then did she realized that somewhere between the moment she'd been hooked and now she'd dropped her gun. She would have grunted, had she been able to.

She took her dagger from her belt and planted it in the monster's arm. It didn't phase it one bit, only making Sombra worry even more. She refused to end strangled by a mass of decayed meat.

The bang of a shot echoed around the garden, and suddenly the monster's arm slacken. Sombra quickly wiggled out of its grasp, coughing as she landed on the lawn. The monster fell backward, a still smoking bullet embedded in its forehead. Sombra looked beside her, to Hana, who was still holding the gun with both hands, somehow surprised that her intuition had been the right one. Sombra smirked.

"Right on time. Good job, conejita."

Soon enough the little group was reunited around the mass of decayed flesh that was the monster. Sombra, seating by the creature, was still massaging her neck, sure that even with her protective gear she would have an ugly mark. Fareeha was supporting herself on Angela, as all of her cuts and broken bones were quickly healing. Hana looked curiously to the monster, walking around it, and pushing its arm with the tip of her shoes.

"Is it..."

"Dead? Yes." Sombra confirmed.

"Then why isn't it turning to dust?"

"Because it's not a normal monster. Someone made it."

Sombra looked at her empty hand, closing the fingers into a fist. Then, she turned to Hana.

"Do you remember what we used to track the gnomes last week?"

"Yeah, why?"

"Help me do it again. I need to finds who created this thing."

"Can't it wait?"

Sombra slowly turned her head toward Angela, who was supporting as best as she could Fareeha, who was spacing in and out while her body healed.

"No, it can't. You should go home, take care of Fareeha. She's going to be drained when she fully wakes up."

"And you? You look like you're about to faint!" Angela defended.

Sombra smirked.

"I'm not. Don't worry about me. Worry about the guy who made this thing."

After one last worried glance, Angela dragged Fareeha through the door, and Sombra, still too tired to move, handed her dagger to Hana.

"Go on, we don't have all night."

The shorter girl first hesitated, but finally took the dagger and asked:

"Can I use my blood?"

"If you want to have a massive headache afterward, sure."

Hana looked at Sombra, still seating on the lawn and, it seemed, barely able to get up. She did look pale and tired, more than usual, which she assumed was because she'd been strangled twice. Hana first knelled beside the creature. From this close, she had noticed all the stitches and clip keeping the thing together. She decided to cut along one of those stitches, on the monster's arm. Dark blood oozed out of the cut, smelling of rotten egg and burned flesh, which made Hana want to vomit. She pursed her lips and tried to breathe as little as possible. She'd been determined to use her own blood next, but the sight of the monster's blood had made her second guess herself. Finally, Sombra, wondering what was taking so long, extended her hand.

"Come on, heels or not you can take two steps to me, can't you?"

Hana snapped out of her nauseous daze and very reluctantly cut open Sombra's palm, mixing her blood with the monster's. Sombra then took a small bag out of her pocket and handed it to Hana, who opened it and took a handful of dust. At first, she'd thought it was monster ashes, but Sombra had assured her it was fairy dust.

Instantly, the wound of Sombra's hand began to glow. It healed quickly, and Sombra finally got up.

"To my car, now."

"Where are we going?"

"The old market."

The old market was exactly what it sounded like. The old and small streets near the harbor had been turned into the old market, an outside mall with small shops selling everything, from food to clothes and strange exotic products.

Hana had driven them there, parking Sombra's car right outside the entrance. While the market was completely closed at this hour, the streets were still open, though only an idiot would wander there in the middle of the night. Which was why Sombra had instructed Hana to stay in the car. While the younger girl was displeased, she did as she was told, and decided to play on her phone while Sombra explored the lanes.

Passing the street on the edge of the market it quickly became pitch black, not that Sombra really minded. The spell was still active, and in a corner of her mind, she could see the vague figure of the monster's creator, talking animatedly to someone else. Though the locating spell wasn't a good spying spell, as the sounds were cut and distorted, she did understand that they were talking about the monster.

Sombra slowly but surely made her way through the labyrinth-like streets, until she reached the corner of a street brightly lit by what was on the other side. She approached carefully, and stopped before the corner, her back to the wall. There, she could finally understand what the inventor and the other person were saying:

"But... but if ya' give me just another stone... I'll fix it, I swear!"

"Too late."

The first voice, Sombra assumed, belonged to the inventor. It was high pitched, with a strange accent, but still that of a man. The second, however, Sombra couldn't place it. She couldn't tell whether it belonged to a man or a woman, it wasn't low but it wasn't high either. She knew they had manipulated their voice, and decided this person was far more important than the inventor.

"No! No please! I'm beggin' ya'! It's the work of me life!"

"A stone isn't free, and I believe it is time that you pay."

"No! No!"

The inventor's pleads turned to screams quickly, and Sombra grimaced. The spell had dispelled, leaving only a pounding headache in her head. There had gone her target, probably killed or worse by the other person. Sombra was about to wait, and hoped the other would pass her by so she could jump them, but suddenly they said:

"You can come out, you know. I don't bite, unless you bite first, of course."

Sombra took her dagger out of her pocket. Her gun was on her belt, but she knew it was a last resort weapon, and she wasn't about to wail it around against an unknown threat.

She stepped around the corner, only to found herself face to face with a shadow. It wasn't a person, more of a projection, and Sombra knew the real person behind hadn't bothered to come see the inventor.

"Who are you?"

"I've had a few names in my short life. Most call me The Witch. Not my favorite, of course, but I'm keeping that one to myself. Just like you."

Sombra felt a shiver run down her spine. She feared what the Witch might be implying.

"So tell me, Witch, where is the inventor?"

"This idiot? Well, I suppose he is at your feet."

Sombra looked down. In the supernatural light illuminating the street, she saw a heap of dust.

"He was your creation."

"Yes. You know a lot about creations, don't you?"

"Why?" Sombra asked, ignoring the Witch's comment.

"Can't a girl just have some fun?"

"What now?"

"Now I'll let you go, I suppose. You've been a good hunter, cleaning up the city. I'll keep you around, for now anyway."

On those words, the projection disappeared, taking the light away with her, and leaving Sombra in the dark.