Ben blinked, his back resting against the tree trunk.
"Wow... That's a lot. Girl, you've landed me in a monumental mess. At least you've got allies, right?"
Sabrina flashed an enigmatic smile.
"Yes."
"Who?"
She leaned closer, her almond-shaped eyes locking with his.
"You."
Ben gently pushed her away with his fingertip.
"You turned me without asking my opinion."
"Because I love you," she whispered.
He burst into laughter, shaking his head.
"Cut the act. The first thing you did was ask me to lick the floor."
She shrugged, feigning innocence.
"I have my fantasies. Logically, you should obey me now. But you're not..."
"Exactly. What you wanted was a well-trained dog, huh?"
"Who knows? Maybe. But I also like dogs that bite." she smiled.
She kissed him, savoring the contact. Ben let her for a moment before breaking the kiss.
"I'm surprised I'm adapting so quickly..." he murmured.
"You have no choice," she replied, staring intensely at him.
"Okay, but how am I supposed to go to school if the sun fries me at the first ray?"
"Close your eyes."
He frowned.
"Are you gonna pull another weird stunt?"
Ben held out his hand, and she slipped a cold ring between his fingers.
He examined it for a moment.
"Wait, is this a marriage proposal?" he joked.
"And why not?"
Ben shook his head, amused.
"I like you, but..."
Sabrina's smile faded slightly.
"You still love her, don't you?"
Silence fell.
"You know she doesn't love you, right? Besides, she already has a boyfriend. You should move on."
Ben shrugged, laughing softly.
"Just like Kaiser, it's hard to forget your first love."
"You should let go, though," she whispered, looking away.
She regained her composure and pointed to the ring with her chin.
"It has a spell that protects vampires from the sun. Until we become powerful enough to no longer need it, you'll have to keep it safe."
Ben twirled the ring around his finger.
"And do you have one too?"
"Of course. I'm only at the abnormal stage. I'm not a nightmare like Dad."
Ben felt a shiver run down his spine.
"How do we level up?"
Sabrina swung her legs back and forth, looking thoughtful.
"We're ranked based on our power and danger. It goes from harmless to abnormal, then terror, nightmare, calamity, and finally scourge. We improve by training to adapt our bodies, and most importantly, by drinking a lot of blood."
Ben grimaced.
"I've suddenly decided I never want to meet your father."
She burst into laughter.
"Don't worry, he doesn't bite."
"I highly doubt that."
They fell silent for a moment, enjoying the night breeze. The city lights shimmered in the distance, contrasting with the forest's darkness.
"So, what do we do now? We should head back, it's getting late," Ben suggested.
Sabrina smiled mysteriously.
"No, we wait."
"Wait for what?"
She turned her head toward him.
"Your first prey."
***
About fifty meters away, perched on a sturdy branch, a hooded figure observed the scene with a crossbow ready to fire. Their gaze was fixed on a pair of vampires feasting on the blood of a young woman in jogging attire.
The male vampire seemed hesitant at first. But the moment the female made the victim's blood flow, as if seized by an uncontrollable frenzy, he tore out the still-beating heart of the unfortunate woman. A purple jet splashed his companion, who laughed softly, licking the warm liquid from her face.
The victim, once full of life, was now a limp puppet in their greedy clutches.
She didn't wait any longer. Her finger pressed the trigger.
But before the bolt could whistle through the air, a violent shock knocked her from her hiding spot. She tumbled through the void, her body slamming into several branches before landing on the leaf-covered ground. She rolled, her breath knocked out by the impact, then sprang to her feet, her senses on alert.
All around her, gaunt figures emerged from the shadows. Their elongated limbs were abnormally thin, their protruding bones piercing through grayish skin. Their oversized jaws, bristling with irregular fangs, snapped open and closed with a sinister click, a stream of saliva dripping onto their bony chests.
She muttered through clenched teeth:
"Wendigos..."
One of them cackled, his raspy voice rising in the night.
"So the rumor about a Zodiac in town was true."
Another, more massive one, ran his scarlet tongue over his cracked lips.
"My parents used to tell me that if I wasn't good, a Zodiac would come and cut off my head. Ahaha."
A third snorted loudly, his dilated nostrils inhaling the scent of fresh flesh in the air.
"Far less terrifying than I thought."
"Lucky we came in a group," a fourth chuckled. "Today, we're gonna taste Zodiac meat. Kekekek."
She scanned her opponents. Five. They stared at her hungrily, their razor-sharp claws twitching with impatience.
"I'm not here for you," she declared, pulling out a small silver knife whose blade faintly reflected the moonlight. "But you're leaving me no choice."
"One, two... five. Abnormal." A thin smile stretched beneath her hood. "It's doable."
Without hesitation, she lunged at them.
The first Wendigo leaped with staggering speed, its claws ready to tear her apart. But she dodged with a fluid step, slipping under its outstretched arm. In the same motion, she plunged her knife into its flank, twisting violently to maximize the damage. The creature howled, but she didn't wait. With an agile leap, she propelled herself onto the back of the second, using her momentum to slit its throat with a precise gesture.
The thick, black blood gushed out.
"Shit! She got Jack!"
Two of them attacked simultaneously. She pivoted, narrowly avoiding the claws that whistled centimeters from her face. One of the monsters tried to snap her with its gaping jaw, but she plunged her knife into its eye before rolling to the side.
The wounded Wendigo stumbled back.
*Growl*
She grabbed the largest one's arm, pulling herself up with supernatural agility and latching onto his neck. Before he could struggle, she repeatedly stabbed her knife into his spine, severing the spinal cord. The creature collapsed heavily, convulsing before going completely still.
Their primitive nature urged them to flee, but their hunger outweighed their survival instinct. There was nothing human about them, and they were no different from the wildest beasts.
One of them leaped toward her. She crouched slightly, anticipating the attack, then at the last moment, she spun on herself, dodging the assault with agility. In a fluid motion, she sliced through her target's tendons, leaving it to collapse on the ground.
She fixed the last hesitant Wendigo with a gaze, wiping the dark blood that trickled down her blade. Then, in a flash of movement, she lunged at him. He tried to flee, but she was too fast. She gripped his skull with both hands and, with a brutal twist, snapped it until a sinister crack echoed.
Then she made sure to stab their eyes several times. Ensuring they were truly dead. Then they reverted to their human forms as they lay lifeless.
Silence fell.
She stood up, breathing calmly, as if nothing had affected her. Her gaze swept over the mutilated bodies.
She adjusted her hood, then turned her eyes toward where the vampires had been.
They were gone.
She grabbed her crossbow and disappeared into the night.