Chapter 2 Plan escape

Something was seriously wrong in York. I had only been here just over a week and already I had killed two vampires, both newborns and both very young, late teens maybe. I was lucky to kill two a year, I was lucky to kill one, let alone two in one week but this was not what unsettled me. There were more. At least another dozen and from what I could tell all new to the immortal life. Who on earth was creating them and why? And worst of all whoever did merely set them loose. Crazy, bold or maybe just sloppy. Either way chaos was everywhere, even if most people couldn't see.

I walked down the deserted allies of York trying to sense others. It was here that I knew many would choose to feed, on the alone and socially shunned of society. However, they had been moving so quickly and chaotically throughout the city that it was hard to keep up. I did my best to conceal my weapons whenever I came across another homeless man sleeping or talking to another. I had to remain inconspicuous and a brandishing a knife everywhere wouldn't help. Still, it never left my hand. I had been out here for nearly six hours and it was almost one in the morning. It was an unseasonably cold night and I could see the faint fog of my breath in the air. I was about ready to call it quits for the night when I finally sensed a vampire near by, another newborn female. Without hesitation I began running towards her direction, my eyes taking in every insignificant detail around me. Run down posters for some band called OVI, three homeless people sleeping in a door way, trashcan turned over, empty pizza box near the ally entrance. Nothing was escaped my sight. It wasn't long before I ran into a parking lot behind one of the abandoned buildings. She was close but she was being cautious, an uncommon trait for a newborn but not unheard of. I was almost certain at least one of them had seen me kill the last one and if they were in this together word must of spread. I knew I would have to be more cautious myself from this point forward and in the back of my mind I began making plans. Though my eyes could not see her I knew she was circling around me like a shark but not coming any closer. This wasn't going anywhere and I couldn't catch her, I needed her to come to me. I went on the offensive, "Come on. You can't be scared of a weak human like me. I know you must be thirsty." Silence echoed throughout the lot, the smallest of creatures hiding from a known predator. "What are you, afraid?" I taunted. It had worked before in the past, bruising a vampire's ego was easy. Just play upon the idea that they are weaker than a human and they come running. However this one didn't. She paused for a moment but began to back away, every second increasing her pace. If I didn't do something quick I was going to loose her. I held out the tip of my knife and pricked my finger. The smallest drop of blood emerged from the wound, but it was enough. She emerged from the shadows, a feral growl emitting from her chest as she bared her teeth, the faint moonlight reflecting off her pale skin. She couldn't have been more than fifteen or sixteen. She had dirty blond hair that was wavy and tied behind her in a messy pony tail. Her clothes were dirty and stained with dirt and blood. She was tiny, maybe 5'1 and her eyes were glowing an ominous red. Yes, she was definitely new and therefore the blood lust was stronger for her. I counted on that. She lunged at me, eyes maddened in her thirst for my blood. She moved quickly, coming at me from the side, but not quick enough. Newborns had little to no skill, relying purely on instinct making them predictable. I knew her move before she did and I was prepared. I was as efficient as ever, thrusting by blade into her neck and decapitating her now immobile body. She fell to the ground with the smallest thud, her head rolling a few feet away. I concentrated for a moment, making sure no one was nearby before I proceeded with the clean up. When I was sure I was alone I carried the twitChrisng body to a trash-can, her skin not bothering me as it had in the past, and placed her inside. I pulled out my matches, struck one and lit her on fire, the fire spreading quickly. The smell was vile and I covered my hand to reduce its potency. As the flames and thick smoke rose higher I could not help but feel guilty for what I had done to the young girl. She was human not so long ago and was changed, most likely against her will, into this deplorable monster. She had a family and friends and they would never know what happened to her. I continued to stare into the flames, making sure all evidence was destroyed. As I prepared to leave my head instinctively snapped east ward as I felt another close by but this was different than the others. She was no new born that was for sure for she had to be about 215 years old, give or take. I knew she was watching but almost as quickly as she came, she was gone. This was going to be a problem. She had to be the one creating the newborns, there was no one else. I couldn't keep killing new born after new born for God knows how many weeks. Their numbers were growing by the day and I had to admit to myself I couldn't keep up. Nor could I take them all on at once if they decided to attack together. I was good but not that good. I had to cut the head off the snake, stop this at its source. That woman was causing this and only her death could end it. Once she was out of the way I would slowly cleanse the city but there was no point until then. As walked back to my motel pondering how to trap her I couldn't help but wonder why again. Why create so many new born vampires? It was almost as if she was building an army. But if that was the case, who was it for? A Chrisll ran down my spine and my grip tightened around my blade. - A Week Later - This past week had been one of the most frustrating of my life. Since Yvonne, I had found out who that young girl was through the missing persons reports and photos, I had not managed to kill any other vampires. I had focused my efforts of finding the one woman, ignoring the others for the time being and being even more cautious so as not to fall into an ambush myself. She was tricky this one, I'll give her that. She never came close enough for me to sense her for long. Ten seconds if I was lucky. She was suspicious and I had not found a way of trapping her yet. I had nearly searched the entire city, but it was clear she kept moving, never in the same spot twice. I couldn't find any patterns to the disappearances or killings, just pure chaos. So far my usual methods had failed me and I became deeply annoyed. There were more killings and disappearances everyday and people in the city were beginning to panic and for good reason. Things were getting out of hand and I felt utterly useless. When I wasn't actively hunting I was researChrisng, hoping I could find something, anything that could help explain this. I sat alone in my motel room scrolling through countless newspaper articles from dozens of nearby towns and cities on my laptop. I was looking for answers but I hadn't come across so much as a whisper yet, though it would help greatly if I knew what questions to ask. There were so many unknowns. I stood up and kicked an empty water bottle that had fallen on the floor. "Ugh! There has to be something out there that would explain what she is doing!" I yelled at no one in particular. I slammed my fist down on the table and quickly shook it as pain shot up my arm. I knew I was missing something, I just didn't know what. It was going to drive me mad. I quickly sat down and reeled in my emotions. I needed to think and stomping around like a five year old wasn't going to help. I closed my eyes for a moment and focused on my breathing. When I calmed myself down both physically and mentally I went back to work. I continued to pore through articles for what seemed like an eternity when something caught my eye. "CAMPERS GONE MISSING." The article was from a local newspaper - InfoEast - in Detroit not too far from here. I soon found others and began reading feverishly. Campers suddenly disappearing, blood at the scene, no other evidence left behind. The shear amount of attacks and missing people was unprecedented for that area. The stories continued saying that foul play was not suspected and that some form of animal uncommon in those parts was most likely responsible. I read part of an interview, "We have had reports of possible bear or wolf sightings near those areas in which people have disappeared. We ask the public to remain calm, avoid going into the woods and if they see anything to call the police station immediately. Under no circumstances should these animals be approached." stated Police Chrisef Carter yesterday. I closed my laptop and began pacing. I knew the signs well. Those were no animal attacks I was sure of it. There were vampires in Detroit at one point or another. While it was unlikely they lingered I needed to check it out. Somehow I knew there was a connection. There was little evidence but my instincts told me there was something there. Quickly making a no decision I began to pack my things, eager to get to Detroit. This was going to end one way or another. As I walked towards the reception area to check out I got the feeling that I would find the answers to my questions and perhaps others I had never thought to ask. The real question is...was I prepared for the answers?