Chapter 64: Thirsty

<I think I may have bit off more than I can chew here!>

<Mother help, my hands are full to the brim here!> I let out a long sigh as I ran towards Sally, who was helping me deliver the new young. It's been a hectic few days for all of us. Essentially, we have been delivering children nonstop for the last 3 days. First, it was Kaylah Who gave birth to a clutch of 30 combat units, followed by Friede, giving birth to the 15 spitters inside her, leaving her with 15 nurses who had yet to arrive. Right now, we are dealing with Theresa giving birth to 30 workers. It's been a very hectic few days, which hasn’t been helped by the fact I have to feed and nurse the new larvae as well. I’m stretched thin. I haven't slept in over 24 hours with all the work that needs to be done.

<Mother, this is the last one!> I ran over to Sally, who was holding her legs open so she wouldn’t crush the larvae as it squirmed out of her hole.

<Come on, mothers here. I'll look after you.> I gently wrapped my hands around the larvae and coaxed it out. The trick is to make it come out of its own power. If you pull, you will just cause unnecessary trauma to the child.

<Almost there- just a few- There you go!> A loud scream escaped the nun as the larvae squirmed out of her; in a flash, I wrapped the larvae up and quickly dashed over to the small nursery where a nurse was waiting. He quickly and efficiently took the larvae off me before gently putting it on the ground with the others. The nursery was a new addition built by the workers, but it wasn’t much. It was a wax floor with a low wall to stop the larvae from escaping.

<We will take over the rest from here, Mother. Please go rest. Feeding them is something we can handle easily.> I nodded at them, walked over to a nearby chair, and sat down. My body felt extremely heavy. I wanna say this level of tiredness was unfamiliar, but sadly it wasn’t. It's all too similar to the tiredness I felt when I was doing an all-nighter at the police department trying to get to the bottom of a tricky case. Sadly, there is now pizza and redbull in this universe…. I think

<mother...are you okay?> It was Sally who had thankfully been with me this entire night. I looked towards her and gave her a weak smile. I was far from it. 3 exhausting nights of delivering and feeding babies is way too much. I need sleep, but I can’t. There is still so much I need to do.

<Been better, but I'm still living. I just need a sit-down for a little bit.>

<Mother, if I can speak out of turn..>

<Sally. You don’t need to be so formal. Speak to me like I’m a person. Call me Diva once in a while. I don’t mind you using my real name >

<sorry mo- Diva. But I feel like you need more than just a sit-down. Go to sleep I can->

<no, it’s fine. Thank you for your concern, but I'll be fine. I’ll just sit down here. Can you get me something to drink>

She gave me a frown before walking away. She’s right; I need a proper rest, more now than ever. But I can’t stop not when so much needs to be done before I depart, and besides, she's just as tired as I am, but she’s doing a way better job of hiding it.

I laid my head back against the wall. The worst part of all this is that the house is still being repaired, so I can’t even sleep in my own bedroom.

<Mother, I agree with Big sis sally. You should sleep..> I looked over to Azuura. He had changed drastically since he ate the royal jelly. I mean, first things first, he walks now. I mean, he walked before, but instead of walking on 6 legs, he walks on two Large clawed feet. additionally, he has grown in height, standing at around 5 feet with a slight hunchback. His body had changed as well. He was a lot sturdier as the armour plates on his body had thickened considerably. His torso was different as well. It was similar to mine, where there were loads of interlocking plates with a black mesh between them. His arms were a force to be reckoned with, and his arms ended with 3  large ebony-coloured claws. And last but not least was His head. It was larger and had 6 eyes; his mandibles were much bigger than before as well, almost double the size.

<Not you as well. Azuura I'm fine.> I let out a long sigh. They really won't drop this. Maybe if I ask about something else. <How is the work on the tunnels?>

<Slow mother. Our workforce has been slashed. We have 4 workers set to clear the 1st underground floor of all the rubble. The 2 nature workers are busy producing more food due to the sudden increase in the number of children. Then we need some of them to transport the food here, not leaving many to work in the tunnel.

<I see. I am sorry for putting all this work on you, but when you have more brothers, things will become easier.>

<Don’t apologise, mother. The hive is growing, and that’s all that matters. We all live and die for our mother and the hive.> A smile curled on my face. He's a good child. I stood up and gave him a pat on the head.

<thank you. About what you said earlier about me taking a break. You're right I can't look after the hive when I'm so ti->

<Mother!> I snapped my head to the side just in time to see Sally burst into the room.

<What is it?!>

<Andre, he wants you now!>

I frowned but quickly stood up and dashed upstairs

<Are there still builders upstairs>

She shook her head <no, they’ve all been cleared out.>

<Good> I felt my leg muscles tense up like a spring, and then in one go, I let go of all the tension, shooting me up the stairs and leaving Sally far behind me hahaha, launch is such a good ability. In a flash, I was upstairs. And then, with a short sprint, I was at the main entrance where Andre was waiting for me.

“Titus wants to see you...NOW.”

I frowned. “Is this about the mushrooms?”

He folded his arms and gave me a stare that said, “What do you think…”

“You better have something, Diva or-“

“Yes. Yes…”

<Mother!> Sally yelled as she arrived in the passageway, followed by Azuura.

<Sally, it's fine. Azuura. Remember those crates I mentioned.>

<Yes, mother.>

<Grab a few of your brothers and follow me. Stay high and out of sight, do you understand.>

He nodded and quickly disappeared. I looked towards Andre, who was waiting impatiently.

“I guess I don't have time to change?” I said jokingly. He let out an annoyed sigh and turned around.

“Come on.”

I signalled Sally, who followed behind me. In no time, we were outside, heading towards the carriage with a familiar-looking driver. I gave him a toothy smile, Which caused him to shiver.

“We need to hurry. In the carriage now, please.” Andre and I quickly went into the carriage. With Sally closely following behind us. She quickly put her foot on the step. But suddenly, she tripped backwards. I quickly got up, grabbed her arm, and pulled her up before she hit the ground.

<Are you okay? If you are that tired, you can stay at home.>

<Sorry Mother. But I'm fine. Just lost my balance. It won't happen again.>

<Hmmmm> I pulled her onto the carriage and guided her to a seat near me. I was still a bit worried about her. Ever since the change, she has been on it. She doesn’t miss much, her missing the step like that……. Then again, we all have our moments from time to time, and she is tired…. I’ll just keep a close eye on her.

Sally reached into one of the pockets in her maid dress and out came a sandwich. She’s been doing this a lot, snacking and eating a lot of food. Could she be stress eating? If so, what could be causing it? The carriage lurched forward as we headed out of the compound. the driver moved quickly, moving us out of the compound and out into the street. I looked around towards Andre, who had an annoyed/ slightly concerned look on his face.

“Thank you for repairing my house. I never mentioned it before,” I said, trying to lighten up the mood

“DIVA. This is serious. Titus isn’t a man who should be messed with. You have to have something or...”

“I understand, trust me. I haven’t been sat on my ass for the last few days...”

“I’ll take your word for it... Sorry.. I just….. it's nothing.”

“Good; how long till we arrive at our destination.”

“it’s a bit far. Around an hour or so.”

“good.”I wanted to push andre for what was bothering him, but honestly, im too tired at the moment. I put my head against the side and closed my eyes, and soon, a familiar darkness took me.

....

“Diva.... Diva. are you awake we will be arriving shortly.”

“5 more minutes…”

“Diva, this is serious. Wake up now!”

I let out an annoyed groan as my eyes slowly drifted open. To find myself in a place I haven’t seen before. It was a large rocky area that looked like it had been dug out. and right at the bottom, there was a small collection of lights and what looked like warehouses

“Where are we....”

“Rhylan quarry. A small  iron quarry a little bit away from doonvatel”

“Somewhere far away and quiet. Is he afraid I might make a scene?”

“Please don’t make a scene.... for both our sakes.”

“Okay, what's the relationship here?”

“What?”

“You and him. I know for sure it's not strictly business between you. Andre you dont look like the type to hang out with that sort, so what's going on. Is he blackmailing you? Are you his slave? What’s going on here?”

Andre looked away and out the window. His demeanour changed from his professional businessman exterior.

“you’re not completely wrong, diva....”

“About wha-“

(DING DING DING)

“Looks like we're here....we’ll talk about this never.” I rolled my eyes just when I thought I was about to learn something. The carriage stopped at the bottom of the quarry In front of an ominous-looking building with 2 of Titus’s goons waiting outside. We were surrounded by old mining equipment and warehouses that had definitely seen better days. The carriage came to a halt, and Andre exited the caravan, followed by Sally and me.

“Diva, you better have something.....”

“Don’t worry, okay... you can relax.

<Stay sharp Sally... we are in uncharted waters here>

.......

<Sally?>

<Hmmm.. yes! I heard you, mother. Sorry, I was just distracted for a little bit>

<hmmmm....> Something was clearly wrong with her, but what? I walked towards the building. The guards watching me like a hawk. I'll have to find out later. Right now, I need to focus on the task at hand. I discretely let out a small clump of flies to scope out the area. This place looks empty, but I don’t buy it. Titus doesn’t seem like the guy who would choose this location randomly. i need to find out what's special about this place.

We walked to the caravan door and pulled it open to reveal a luxurious interior akin to an expensive hotel room.

“You’ve arrived. Finally, Take a seat.”  Titus’s voice echoed with a commanding aura. He was not pleased. I walked over to the sofa opposing him and sat down. Andre, sallly, and the 2 guards followed me in and sat on a bunch of seats off to the side.

“I’ll be dammed; Andre wasn’t lying when he said you changed. You are Diva, correct?”

“How many other bright yellow bug people do you know?”

A small chuckle escaped him. “Not many. Just what are you? I searched through every bestiary in this town, yet I've never seen a single entry about you.”

Why are you looking me up? are you looking for a weakness? “I’m pretty sure my race has nothing to do with our business. I have something you want, you have something I want let's trade and go our separate ways.”

“Straight to the point, I like that. Nice to see your changes haven't changed much about your personality.”

Like I care, get to the point. You are a means to an end. The sooner I can cut you out, the better.

“So let's trade.. where are my mushrooms.”

I looked over to Sally and nodded. She reached into one of the pockets in her maid outfit, pulled out an ornate black box, brought it over, and placed it on the table in front of us. He opened the box, and suddenly a huge bunch of alien blue mushrooms exploded out in front of him.

“This small amount isn’t what we agreed to.” He said with his voice dripping with anger. “After all the delays... do I look like a joke?!”

“Of course, this isn't the full amount. The rest is close by, I assure you.”

“Then give it.”

“Not after I see my goods. It’s normal for any business transaction for the buyer to see the goods before purchasing and vice versa.”

The man growled, his face filled with anger. But like a switch, he changed, going back to his calm, methodical businessman exterior.

“right, how could I forget.” He stood up and signalled for everyone to follow him. I smiled and stood up to follow him. We went back into the mining outpost and headed towards one of the warehouses.

<pssst mother.> I didn't react, but I could feel one of my flies on my shoulder.

I gave him a small prod through the hive weave so he knew i was listening.

<we’ve looked all over the area; Mother and everyone else here are the only people here.>

Really. No, I don’t believe that. Something's up here.

<However, we did notice a giant hole not too far away. It doesn’t look like it was mined naturally. We wanted to investigate further, but something felt...wrong with it.>

So, there is practically no security and a big ominous hole. Yeah, let's avoid that for the time being.

“We’re here.”

I gave them the order for the flies to return to me as one of his men unlocked the door.

“Are you ready?” Before I could respond, the door swung open, revealing a warehouse filled to the brim with naked women all standing in lines. There was a mix of everything from blondes to brunettes, short and tall, and so on. I even saw a demi-human in the mix.

“Here they are. I've managed to source 50 of them.”

“50. That’s a lot more than expected.” I Walked over to one of them. Her eyes were completely glossed over and vacant, like nobody was at home.

“Oh, so you’ve noticed. Look at their wrists.”

I looked down, and on all of their wrists, there was a dark green wristband with engravings on it.

“It's an enslavement band. It keeps their consciousness silenced as they await a master.”

“Is that so… And who is this master.”

“No one at the moment. All you have to do is touch that wristband.”

“May i?”

“Sure.” I wrapped my hand around her wristband, which caused it to glow a bright green before settling down. And like a switch, the life returned to her eyes.

“Wha…i…Where am I. WHAT'S GOING ON! WHERE MY DAUGHTER I NEED TO FI-“

“Silence!”

The bracelet glowed bright green again, and soon, her mouth was wired shut. She tried to scream and pull her mouth open, but nothing happened. Her body refused to do as she wanted. It was mine to do what I wanted. Usually, I would be excited about that, but for some reason, it feels empty. No matter I have what I need. That’s all that matters.

“That works well. How do I switch off her consciousness again.”

“Just snap your fingers 4 times.”

I did so. And just like that, the light in her eyes faded, and she stood there like a zombie.

“Hahaha. Amazing, just what I needed. Do you handle deliveries?”

“Depends where do you want them.”

“Do you have a map of the consecrated forest nearby?”

He chuckled and signalled to one of his men, who ran to a nearby room and quickly returned with a rolled-up map; without missing a beat, the henchman rolled the map onto a wooden crate and moved it in between

“Well Diva. Where did you have in mind?“Titus said whilst scanning over the map. It was pretty old, but I could make out what I needed. I noticed immediately that there were several empty clearings not too far from where my hive was based. I planned for him to deliver them to the open furthest away but still relatively close to the hive and then have workers carry them over. Luckily, there was a clearing that fit that description perfectly.

“That one”

“Hmmm. It's possible, but where you want is nowhere near any of my routes. It will cost you extra.”

Of-Fucking course it does.

“How much are we talking here...”

“Oh, not money… I want something more interesting. Something more precious.”

“And what would that be? Magical artefacts, precious gems and materials.”

“I was thinking something more organic. That girl of yours…”

*SNAP*

Wooden splinters exploded everywhere as I crushed the box with my hands. The room dropped several degrees lower. “Choose your next sentence carefully” Rage bubbled like a volcano underneath me if he thinks that I will let him even touch her.

“Don’t be like that Diva. It's only a fair price for making me wait so long. Think of it as a lesson to be more punctual with your deliveries.”

PUNCTUAL! THIS FUCKING ASSHOLE

I turned around towards him, my pincers drawn with venom dripping out. “I don’t care who you are, Titus. I will end you if you even think about touching her.” a deep growl burbled in my chest, causing my entire body to vibrate.

New ability added: Intimidating growl.

A growl from the deepest depths of your chest. Enough to scare most living things.

(Create a growl that can intimidate enemies for a brief moment. This skill is very effective against opponents who are weaker than you or are subservient to you)

Sally and the goons instantly stepped back as if they were looking at a lion that had escaped its cage. Good. I will end anyone, no matter who they are, if they ever think of hurting what's mine!

A brief flash of fear went across his face, but it was soon replaced with anger.

“You.. Insolent….”

Suddenly a blood-red portal appeared in his hand, and soon, a long, red, thorny whip appeared in his hand. “ It seems that someone needs to be taught their place…”

My legs muscled and tensed. I'm gonna have to be quick. I have to kill him in one hit; maybe il aim for his he-

“ENOUGH!” Andre yelled as he lept in between us. “This is not why we are here, okay? We are all here for business and nothing else. Now I think the price of Diva’s spouse is a little too high for something like this, remember. She helped us with the orphanage, so I think you can forgive the delay.”

The pig glared at Andre before putting his whip away. “Fine. I may have been too overzealous.”

“and Diva. You understand Titus has a reason to be mad at how long it took to get the mushrooms.”

“tch’ devil advocate. Fine, I understand.”

“Good. Now, let's discuss something more pleasing to both parties.”

I nodded, and we started talking; eventually, we landed on a deal that essentially annihilated my cut of the profits, meaning I wouldn't see a single penny from the sale of those mushrooms. However, he has to handle all the deliveries. Why don’t I do this myself? Well, the risk is too high. My greatest strength is that I'm unknown to the vast majority of the world. And I would like to keep it that way. The existence of the alvearix will be known to the world on my terms. Until then, it would be best to use already existing networks and besides. I have a plan that will undo everything this asshole Titus has worked for. But that’s for a later date. I won't forgive him at all for thinking he can touch Apollinaris.

“Are we both happy.”

“I'm content Andre,” I said, trying to hold back my frustration.

“As am I.”

“Good.”

I walked past him, Andre and towards the door. “Are we done here?”

“Aren't you forgetting something, Diva? My mushrooms.”

“No, I haven't” I Signalled for them to follow me outside. “Everything you want is right here” I opened the door to reveal 10 large crates.

“What.. How did you do this?” asked Titus.

“Trade secret.”

His face briefly twisted into a scowl before returning back to normal. He signalled back towards one of his men, who ran over and, with his bare hands, opened the box lid.

“Woah! BOSS, take a look at this haul. It's pretty much bursting with mushrooms.”

“Yes, it is… It must have been very hard to make so many.”

“hmmmm….”

2 days earlier….

<Mother. Come here, you have to see this.>

<Sally, I'm quite busy at the moment. Can this wait”

<It will only take 5 seconds…> She grabbed my arm and pulled me away towards a corner where 2 of the nature mana workers.

<Sally, what this?>

<Just a second… Okay, guys, just like we practised> The 2 workers nodded. And suddenly, green mana swirled in their mandibles. The two of them focused hard until, finally, the mana turned into the shape of a mushroom.

< You're so close… Come on> Sally reassured them until finally, all the mana coalesced into one shimmering blue mushroom.

<Is that…..>

<Yes, mother… it's like the one Sally made.> Sally chimed in.

< It's very complex> Said one of the workers. <Its structure and the way the man mixes with the mushroom fibres. Big sis apollinaris is a genius for being able to even create it.>

I picked up the mushroom and inspected it. It was almost identical to the one Apollinaris made, except for a few blemishes. Was it really that hard to make. Apollinaris made it look so easy….

<How many can you make?>

<We plan to make at least 50 that we can plant. After that, given the right conditions, it should be able to grow and spread. We predict we could have at least 500 by the end of the week.”

<Good. You guys get to work on that whilst we handle things here>

The workers nodded and scurried away <Thank you for this, Sally. I imagine this was all your idea, wasn’t it?>

< It's nothing, mother. I just wanted to hel->

I  quickly pulled her into a hug. <you are a very good daughter>

The present…

“Satisfied,” I Said to the toad. I could see his eyes filling with greed. “Oh very, I'm gonna be a very rich man.”

“We”, Andre interrupted

He glared at him and rolled his eyes. “I guess this concludes business. I apologise for the display earlier. It was….. very unlike me.” He held out his hand and gave me a fake smile. I took his hand and did the same. I feel today won't be the last time we butt heads. However, next time, I Will have the upper hand.

“Well then, Andre. Is it too much to ask for you to take me home?”

“Sure, I did drag you here, didn’t I.” Yes, you did, and when we got in the carriage, you have a lot of questions to answer. You're not escaping me this time.

I looked over to Sally and beckoned her to move. “Sally, let's go. We have plenty to deal with at home.” She took a few steps towards me before stopping again.

“Sally….?”

“Mommy…… I don’t…”,

*THUD*

“SALLY!”

I shot to her side like a bullet. Her body had gone pale, and she was breathing hard. Just what happened? She just…Fell?

“What the, Is she okay?” One of his goons ran over to give me a hand, but I instantly slapped it away

“DO NOT TOUCH HER, YOU VERMIN”, I Yelled, followed by another intimidating growl. Titus’s lackeys, who had come to help, instantly shrunk away in fear. I felt around her neck for a pulse. Just what is going on with her? I thought she was just tired all this time. Dammit Diva! How could you let this happen?

“There it is.” I counted her heart was racing 100 no 120..140….her heart rate was skyrocketing. I placed my hand on her chest, and soon, black and green mana swirled with each other as I cast a minor healing spell, but it did nothing. Her heart rate went higher, reaching into the 200s. not good, NOT GOOD

I put her into a princess carry whilst unfurling my wings, and before they could even react, I took off into the night sky and towards the town.

<Stay with me, Sally.>

<Mommy……help..>

<I will just hold on.>

<Thirsty…hungry….>

Thirsty and hungry? Has she not been eating? But I saw her eat today. She ate a lot, in fact.. was she feeling like this entire time, and to think I forced her to come here? Agghha! How could I be so stupid? I'm such a bad mother!

<Thirsty…> She let out a pained moan as her skin got paler. Dammit, I need to do something fast. But what? I don’t even know the cause. She can't be thirsty and hungry because I've seen her eating much more than usual. Unless she is not thirsty in the traditional sense.

<Sally, can you open your status?>

<Sta..tus>

On cue, a yellow menu popped up[in front of me. Nothing looked unusual except for a few new abilities I'd never seen before; however, none of them looked like they would cause this. Is it a title, maybe? I looked up, and there were no new titles; however, one thing stuck out to me. Her title Culcidae.

Culcidae

Blood, the elixir of life, runs in most living things, and during your journey through life you have gotten a taste of its tasty embrosia.

(The owner of this title now has a taste for blood and will need to partake in it regularly. Doing so will lead to an increase in strength and a boost in recovery however not doing so will cause the owner to lose strength and get weaker. This title also opens many doors to many unique abilities and magic)

Damn it…. <Sally, have you had any blood recently…> She didn't respond, only shaking her head sligtly to the left or right.

<That’s all I needed> My wings flapped hard again, giving me a boost forward. We know the cause now, and to find the cure, we have to find her blood. I would give her my own, but due to my [venomous constitution], my blood might just kill her. She should be immune, but I can't risk it. It has to be someone else.

The city quickly came into view. Thankfully, this meeting took place at night, allowing me to move unnoticed. I flapped my wings a few times, giving me a speed boost fast enough to fly into the city. I scanned the city, looking for a place for Sally. I needed to find somewhere quiet with nowhere around, Preferably somewhere familiar as well. Thankfully, I knew a place that fit that description perfectly. Fate sure is funny, making me go to the place where I first set my eyes on Sally.

I kept my speed up and soon found myself hovering over a familiar alleyway. The same one I found Sally. I quickly and quietly dove down towards the ground, landing square in the centre of an ally. As soon as I landed, I released all my flies and got them to scan for humans to feed.

<Sally, just hold on, okay?>

She didn’t respond, but I knew she was still alive. She is just trying to conserve as much strength as she can. In no time, I got an alert through the weave telling me the locations of two humans. I quietly made my way over to the alley a few blocks north.

<Mother over here.>

I flew over to the fly who was on top of an alley overlooking a dead-end alleyway with a quiet side alley connected to it. Oh, this is perfect. I quickly went into the side alley. As soon as I landed on the ground, I gently placed Sally on the ground.

<Here it is. I quickly eliminate the two blood bags and bring them over to Sally. This shouldn’t be too difficult.>

I quickly scurried to the edge of the alleyway and peeked towards the unsuspecting meals. Too easy. My leg stepped around the corner when suddenly I felt a boiling hot hand on my shoulder. It was Sally’s

<Sally, what are you->

Before I could say anything, she walked around the corner and towards the group. I wanted to intervene, but my instincts screamed at me to stop. Fine. I'll watch. Ready to act if I have to….

Human Pov…

I stuck my hand towards the burning trash can…

“So warm…..”

“Yep, and it's all ours, hehe”

I looked over to my mate and patted him on the back. “You did good, Alin. This is gonna be the best night we've had in a while.”

“Nah, it was a joint effort, Vaarn”

I took a step closer and rubbed my hands in the fire. It's been so long since I've been so warm. So happy. All I need is a good meal and-

Suddenly, an icy visceral chill ran up my entire back; it felt like someone stabbed a dagger made of ice into my back.

“Alin….”

“Yeah?”

“You feel that?”

“Yeah…”

I turned around just in time to see a girl slowly walking towards us. She was wearing a maid outfit. What's a maid doing here, of all places?

“W….w…who goes there…. What do you want? We ain't sharing a single thing! So get lost!” Alin yelled towards the maid. However, it didn’t do anything to her; she stood there still like a statue. I was about to take a step away from her when suddenly her body lurched forward as she started walking. However, its movements were off. She stumbled with each step and drifted from left to right across the alleyway with each step. It felt like she was about to collapse with each step.

“Maybe she's sick, Vaarn”

“I dunno. Something feels off. Why would a maid be out here of all places.”

“Maybe she escaped from somewhere? She could be a victim?”

“Alin…. Let's go. I don’t think it’s a good idea to stay here any-“

*Thud*

Our head snapped towards the girl who had just fallen headfirst into the ground. Before I could stop him, Alin ran to her side.

“No, Alin! You idiot!” I chased behind him towards the girl. My heart raced, and my mind twisted as it screamed at me to run away. Something was seriously wrong about this. Is it the girl, my imagination I just don’t know? What I do know is that I have to stop that idiot from getting hurt or worse.

“Are you okay?” Alin yelled as he arrived at the girl. I arrived as well but kept a few steps away. He shook the girl's shoulders, trying to get a response, but nothing. Her eyes were closed, and her skin was pale and sweaty. Maybe Alin was right. No, NO! We don't know yet. Let's keep our guard up.

“Crap Vaarn. We need to get help. I think she may be unconscious.”

“Alin….think about this.. somethings not right. I don’t know what, but we need to leave her.”

Alins' eyebrows frowned as he got ready to argue, but then a loud mumble came from the girl “Woah… easy, okay, I'm here to help!” Alin yelled. “What's wrong? Do you know anyone who can help you? Please, you have to speak to me.” She mumbled again, but we still couldn't understand. Alin moved his ear a little bit closer to her lips, trying to understand, when suddenly she lifted her head off the ground.

“THIRSTY!”  She screamed before she dug her teeth into his neck. Alin screamed. Instantly, I ran over and started pulling the girl off him.

“LET GO OF HIM NOW!”  I curled my hands into a fist and sent it towards her. “STOP RIGHT NOW! “ I punched her again and again, but she didn’t even budge. She is strong, so incredibly strong. Alins screams got louder as blood sprayed from his neck onto her and the nearby wall. DAMMIT, I can't just do nothing! I looked around and noticed a bit of rusty piping on the wall. I sprinted over, wrapped my hands around the pipe, and pulled it off the wall with one good yank. Without missing a beat, I charged back and hit her again and again with the pipe over and over again, getting blood all down the length of it, but strangely, she wasn’t taking damage; blood was coming out, but in the time it took me to ready another swing she was completely fine. Alins wails were starting to get quieter, and his struggle against her was weaker. Crap, I have to do something more drastic. If hitting her won't help. I'll just have to stab her. I quickly twisted the pipe and drove it towards her.

“GET OF HIM YOU MONSTER”

The pipe got within inches of her when suddenly there was a large gusty of wind, and I felt my body take off into the air and into a nearby wall. I screamed as unimaginable pain wrecked my body. It felt like all the bones in my back were shattered into dust instantly; it was impossible to move, no matter how much I wanted. I watched as the fight in Alins body finally gave in, leaving nothing but silence in the alleyway. No more screams of terror, no sounds of a struggle, just silence and the feeling of Impending doom. The girl pulled her mouth away from his neck, sending another splash of blood across the wall. And that’s when I saw them, 4 long protruding fangs that shimmered like pearls in the moonlight. It would be beautiful if she didn’t hold the corpse of my best friend in her hand. The girl looked towards me, grinning like a cat that has its prey cornered. Her eyes glowed red like they were holes in hell itself. I blinked, and suddenly, she was in front of me before I could react. I felt 4 sharp pricks go into my neck, and then there was nothing.